Schoenendoos van paar avondschoenen c. 1928

This shoebox, for a pair of evening shoes, was made by Manfield. The faded grey of the cardboard makes me think of a misty night. I can just see the shoes, all glittery, nestling inside. I imagine someone carefully placing their dancing shoes back in their box, already dreaming of the next night out. Perhaps it was made to be tucked away, a quiet object holding stories of sparkling nights. The box’s surface reminds me of the way Cy Twombly would paint - a kind of controlled roughness, with the texture almost like it’s breathing. It’s kind of beautiful in its modesty. It reminds me that art and life aren’t separate; they're always influencing each other. Even a simple shoebox can carry a sense of longing and memory. In the hands of an artist, or even a shoemaker, everyday things are transformed and made special.