Slipper c. 1941

Dorothy Dwin made this watercolor painting of a slipper, sometime in the 20th century, with a real tenderness. I love the way she’s taken the time to build up these soft, pale layers of color. It’s like she’s trying to capture not just the look of the slipper, but its very essence. You can see in the grainy texture of the paint, how the pigment settles into the paper, that she’s really letting the materials do their thing. The color is so delicate, like a memory fading, and that ribbon tied on top is a little ghostly. There’s something intimate about the way she’s observed this everyday object, elevating it to something precious. It reminds me a little of Agnes Martin’s drawings, with that same quiet focus and attention to detail. Ultimately, it suggests that art isn’t always about grand gestures, it can be about finding beauty in the simplest things.