Boy's Suit c. 1937

Jessie Benge made this drawing of a Boy's Suit with an unknown medium and date. It's so curious, isn't it? Looking at a drawing of a suit, you get a sense of its potential, but it’s like the suit is waiting to be filled. I can almost feel Jessie's hand as she built up the shapes with gentle marks, deciding where the shadows fall and how the fabric folds. There is something fragile and hopeful in these depictions. Like she is saying, a suit can be so much more than cloth and buttons; it's a whole world of aspiration and identity. Maybe she thought about the boy who might wear it and what he would become. Maybe she wondered if he would play, or if he would be in a big room, or just what it would be like for him to wear this suit and maybe feel like a grown up. I think Jessie’s onto something here.