Bonnet c. 1940

This is a watercolour titled Bonnet by Nancy Crimi, who lived from 1855 to 1995. The paper is thin and the pigment stains and bleeds into it, so Crimi must have had to exercise an enormous amount of control. It's an image of a bonnet, pale, subtle, and delicate. The lace trim looks almost as if it's floating. I wonder if the artist was thinking about the history of fashion when they made it, perhaps a reflection on past eras. The bow, so large and silky, looks as though it might fall apart at any moment. Watercolour is a fugitive medium, it doesn't last. I think there’s a sense of melancholy in this choice of medium; a desire to hold on to something beautiful, yet knowing it is destined to fade. Painting is like that, it's a conversation across time with other artists who have tried to capture something fleeting and elusive. It’s an act of hope. It embraces ambiguity, allowing for multiple interpretations.