Waistcoat c. 1936

Bessie Forman made this watercolour drawing of a waistcoat, sometime in her long lifetime. I love the tenderness of this image. It’s a study, a record, a dream of a garment. You can feel the care Bessie took in rendering the details of the design, the subtle textures and embellishments, all done with such gentle precision. It feels old fashioned, even for her time. I imagine her, head bent to the task, carefully mixing each shade and hue, trying to capture the play of light on the fabric. It would have taken real concentration to pick out the delicate patterns on the surface. The second drawing in outline is like a ghost image. Together, the two drawings remind me of a dressmaker’s pattern, or an architect’s plan. Like all artists, craftspeople like Bessie are makers. They give form to our world. They imagine things into being. I wonder how many waistcoats Bessie herself owned?