Dress c. 1936

Jean Peszel, who lived an impressively long life, made this drawing of a dress, sometime, well, we don't know exactly when! It’s yellow, frilly and very, very pretty. Imagine Peszel with their pencil or paintbrush in hand, dreaming up this confection. What kind of party is this dress for? Or is it for the theatre? Or a fancy-dress ball? There's also a fainter, softer drawing of the dress next to it. I think it's interesting when an artist includes their workings in the final thing, you know? It’s like they’re saying, “Hey, this is how I got here.” That yellow, it feels both sunny and old-fashioned. And the way the ruffles are drawn – all those tiny, squiggly lines – you can almost feel the fabric tickling your skin. It makes me want to get my paints out and just go wild with color and texture. Peszel's put something beautiful on paper, and that’s kind of an invitation, don’t you think? A thread in the long, ongoing conversation that is art.