Purse 1935 - 1942

Here's a little painting of a purse that Marion Gaylord made, we don't know exactly when, on a piece of paper. It’s got this patchwork pattern, all these tiny, tight marks. It looks like she’s feeling her way through the process, letting the colors mingle and shift as she goes. There's a dark, almost black, grid, overlaying everything and corralling the chaos a bit. The top part is a smooth, solid green, a big contrast. I’m drawn to the contrast between the frenetic energy in the bottom section and the quiet simplicity above, a constant negotiation between order and chaos. It reminds me a bit of the quilts made by the women of Gee’s Bend, they also have that raw, improvisational quality. And like those quilts, this purse seems to be saying that art is less about perfect representation and more about the joy of making.