Man's Coat 1935 - 1942

Nancy Crimi's "Man's Coat" emerges as a delicate dance of color and form, likely rendered with watercolor or gouache. I imagine Crimi delicately building the intricate pattern of green checks and floral embellishments, each stroke a testament to patience and precision. It's almost as if she's trying to reconstruct a memory, perhaps a coat she once saw or dreamt of. The faint sketch of the coat's back view adds another layer of introspection, a ghostly echo of the garment's full form. This piece reminds me of those historical fashion plates, but with a twist – there's a softness, an intimacy here that transcends mere documentation. It feels like Crimi is engaging in a conversation with the past, reinterpreting it through her own unique sensibility. It speaks to painting as a form of embodied expression, where the artist's touch imbues the work with feeling, and allows for multiple readings.