Man's Suit 1935 - 1942

Nancy Crimi painted this watercolour and graphite work, Man’s Suit, on paper. Just imagine the artist, bent over, making an inventory of sartorial details! It's like she’s building a relationship with the suit, trying to reconstruct its three-dimensionality on a flat plane. There's a real tenderness in the observation of the ruffles around the neck and the way the fabric gathers. You can sense the artist thinking through the folds and creases. I wonder if Crimi considered the back view to be a ghostly presence— a kind of echo of the "real" suit. I am drawn to the deep magenta of the coat; it feels rich and intense. I see in this work an attention to history and detail. I can imagine her work echoing through time, speaking to other artists who love fabric, form, and history. Ultimately, each artist builds on those that came before, contributing to a shared visual language that changes and evolves over time. It's kind of lovely, isn't it?