Willie Cole USA, b. 1955
Cat Caller, 2017
Shoes, wire, and screws
23 x 20 x 12 in.
58.4 x 50.8 x 30.5 cm
58.4 x 50.8 x 30.5 cm
8932
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This shoe sculpture by Willie Cole is part of a series of such works that reference feline characteristics. Cole assembles these works from women’s vintage, luxury shoes, locating anthropomorphic features...
This shoe sculpture by Willie Cole is part of a series of such works that reference feline characteristics. Cole assembles these works from women’s vintage, luxury shoes, locating anthropomorphic features within his compositions that are reminiscent of African masks. Cole’s practice is defined by his use of multiples. The titles he gives his works can be interpreted in multiple ways, and his use of multiples within the work creates the conditions for viewers to reexamine their relationship to the consumer objects Cole uses for raw materials. Each of Cole’s shoes has a history as a consumer object. Every scratch and scuff on their soles is a record of someone’s existence, a remnant of past energy. These objects are connected to a human desire for transformation; a desire also referenced in the sculpture itself, as well as in the sculptures of the West African Senufo people that inspire the aesthetic of these works. Cole’s artworks exemplify the spirit, optimism, and mystery within that desire.
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