Needlepoint Slippers c. 1940

These ‘Needlepoint Slippers’ were rendered by LeRoy Griffith at an unknown date, and with an intriguing mix of materials. You’ve got needlepoint, of course, but then it’s rendered on paper with watercolor and graphite, which gives the whole thing a kind of layered effect. Look at the way the light catches the heel of the slipper. See how Griffith builds up the surface with thin washes of color? The graphite outlines feel precise, almost architectural, but then the needlepoint itself is so tactile, so handmade. It’s like two different worlds colliding: the world of craft and the world of fine art. I’m reminded of a kind of trompe-l’oeil effect, where you’re not quite sure what you’re looking at. Is it a drawing of a slipper, or is it a slipper that’s been flattened and pinned to the wall? Maybe that’s the point, though. Maybe Griffith is trying to remind us that art is always a kind of trick, a way of making us see things that aren’t really there. Like Magritte, but with more cozy footwear.