Boys's Dress c. 1940

Esther Hansen made this drawing of a boy’s dress, at a time unknown and with unknown materials, but it looks like pencil. The dress is colored in a pale tan, almost like unbleached linen, and decorated with delicate white floral embroidery. What strikes me is the tender, almost hesitant touch of the pencil – you can see the individual lines that build up the form, creating a sense of texture and depth. Look at the way the fabric is suggested by these marks. It’s not just a representation of a dress, but an evocation of the act of making, the hours spent stitching and embellishing. There’s a real intimacy in the rendering of the embroidery, each tiny leaf and petal carefully outlined. It reminds me of the work of textile artists like Ghada Amer, who use embroidery as a way to explore themes of femininity and domesticity. Both artists use the process of making to examine the cultural significance of what they are making. Art is an ongoing conversation!