Leather Shoe c. 1940

Rose Campbell-Gerke made this drawing of a leather shoe, we don’t know when, using what looks like coloured pencil or watercolour. The colours are like something you’d find in nature, browns and tans. It's amazing how much she can describe the textures and weight of the shoe, with what seems like so little means! Take a closer look, see how she describes the bend and sag of the leather around the heel using just thin, delicate lines. And how the marks create light and shadow, turning the flat surface of the paper into a 3D object. It’s as if she is mapping every detail of the shoe, not just describing its surface, but exploring its history. This drawing puts me in mind of Van Gogh’s paintings of shoes. He painted humble, everyday objects and made them seem noble. Gerke does something similar here. She takes a common shoe and, through careful observation, transforms it into an object worthy of attention. Making the ordinary extraordinary, that’s what art is all about!