Man's Shoe 1935 - 1942

Nancy Crimi’s drawing, Man’s Shoe, is made with a combination of graphite and watercolor on paper. I can picture Crimi at her desk, a pile of shoes beside her, squinting her eyes, trying to capture the shape of the shoe, the buckles, and the peculiar contours. The lines are delicate and precise, rendered in graphite, but it’s the soft washes of watercolor that really make it sing. Look at that shoe! The body is an elegant grey, accented by a pop of red on the heel and a metallic gold buckle. The paint is applied in thin layers, almost like a watercolor glaze, allowing the paper to breathe beneath. Crimi’s process is fascinating, a real conversation between observation and interpretation. What kind of statement was she trying to make with this color choice? Perhaps this rendering is a nod to the understated glamour and subtle details found in everyday objects. Artists are in constant dialogue with each other, across time, trading notes, and inspiring each other’s creative journeys.