Girl's Dress (Pattern) 1935 - 1942

Editor: Here we have Nancy Crimi's "Girl's Dress (Pattern)," made between 1935 and 1942, a drawing in pencil on paper. I find the geometry of the shapes quite appealing, the neatness of their arrangement. What do you see in this piece? Curator: It’s interesting to consider this not just as a drawing, but as a set of instructions, a template for production. How does it shift your understanding to think of it as a blueprint for labor, a map for a dressmaker? Editor: That does reframe it! I was focused on it as a static image, but it's a stage in a process, connecting the artist's hand to garment creation. Curator: Exactly. Notice the detailed annotations, the precise lines. These speak to the material reality of clothing production, a process of cutting, stitching, and fitting. The value resides in the act of *making*. Think of the social context – were these patterns for professional seamstresses or for home sewing during a time of economic constraint? How might this drawing challenge traditional notions of ‘high art’ by documenting a practical, everyday skill? Editor: So, the drawing’s artistic merit stems less from its aesthetic value, and more from its function and its connection to broader social and economic factors? Curator: Precisely. The drawing is less an end product, and more a trace of labor. I wonder what other seemingly mundane objects conceal such stories of production and consumption? Editor: I’ll never look at patterns the same way! It’s like looking at the ghost of a dress, still waiting to be made. Curator: Indeed. It is in this way that the material speaks volumes about broader social structures and the role of artistic practice.