Iron Sole c. 1940

Rocco Navigato's 'Iron Sole' captures an object that has been used and worn through the artist's unique eye. I see that worn, brown form on the page, an old iron sole, and I imagine Navigato carefully layering the colors to get that aged, textured effect. The sole is peppered with rusty nail heads and the white parts jump out as if the structure is disintegrating. I can just imagine him, brush in hand, thinking about how the material has been manipulated and eroded by time. What would it have been like to create a picture of the kind of object you see lying around, and to create a likeness so perfect it would last forever? It’s a humble kind of picture-making, one that shares a sensibility with other artists who found inspiration in the ordinary. Artists are always in conversation, you know, inspiring each other across time. And that’s the beauty of art: it’s a space where ambiguity thrives, inviting endless interpretations.