The Last Straw presents a visual meditation on the tension between desperation and reformation, contingent on the viewer’s perspective. Central to the composition are two lace motifs, which appear either to be in the process of disintegration or reconstitution. This ambiguity is deliberate, inviting multiple readings. The mirrored forms establish a sense of duality and introspection, reinforced by the symmetrical layout and the reflective quality of the silver leaf.

The technical process reinforcing the work involved the construction of low-relief forms beneath the silver leaf, using a traditional gesso made from boiled-down rabbit-skin glue. The material and conceptual qualities of lace served as a major point of reference throughout the development of The Last Straw. The intricate, laborious nature of lace-making, its fragility, precision, and historical resonance, offered a compelling framework for exploration within the oil medium. Reproducing the fineness of lace through paint was a critical component in articulating the work’s thematic concerns around tension, transformation, and continuity.