Shoe Buckle c. 1940

Editor: This is a watercolor drawing called "Shoe Buckle" from around 1940 by Sylvia Dezon. There's something really intriguing about the technical quality, rendering something utilitarian with such care. What's your take on it? Curator: It’s fascinating to see such meticulous detail applied to an everyday object like a shoe buckle. Dezon’s choice of watercolor is crucial. How does the fragility and relative inexpensiveness of the medium speak to the value placed on adornment during this period? Consider the social context: buckles were mass-produced yet desired; functional, yet aesthetically driven. Editor: That’s interesting. It makes me think about the tension between industrial production and personal expression. Is the focus on the buckle significant considering the historical events that took place at the time? Curator: Exactly. World War II was underway. Resources were scarce. Utility was prioritised. So, depicting something so overtly ornamental perhaps offers a commentary on values. How might this emphasis on the buckle’s design and craftsmanship speak to the tension between necessity and luxury in the face of such turmoil? The material limitations of watercolor during this period should be carefully analyzed. Editor: I hadn't thought about that connection at all. Seeing it as a document of production during wartime reframes my perspective. Curator: This opens a discourse about the act of production, what materials artists utilize, and why they choose particular mediums at specific times in history. It causes one to consider if "high art" and utilitarian craft objects are so distinct at all. Editor: That's given me so much to consider about the piece's significance. Thanks! Curator: Likewise! It's an honor to revisit this kind of work. We have gained better understanding of art's material dimensions.