Young Man Doing Up his Shoe 1951 - 1952

Editor: This is Martin Froy’s *Young Man Doing Up his Shoe*, housed at the Tate. It’s a powerfully fragmented figure, almost crystalline. What do you see in this piece? Curator: The act of tying a shoe is an everyday ritual. Froy’s deconstruction, though, suggests a breaking down of the familiar, hinting at anxieties of the postwar era. Do you see how the shattered planes also evoke stained glass, a visual language for spiritual searching? Editor: I hadn't considered that parallel! It adds a layer of depth to a seemingly mundane activity. Curator: Exactly. It transforms a simple act into a symbol of fragmented identity and the search for wholeness in a broken world. Editor: Thanks, I will never look at tying my shoelaces the same way.