The Red Shoes

Acrylic on board, 50 x 40 cm, 700 NZD

The Red Shoes is a Hans Christian Anderson story about Karen, a young girl whose vain attachment to her shoes condemns her to dance uncontrollably. Even after she has an executioner amputate both her feet, they continue to follow her. (Of course, she’s ultimately redeemed in death.) As a child, I always loved this story—possibly not for the right reasons—as I always admired Karen’s refusal to be grateful! In the retelling of many fairy stories, bad characters often become witches or “Gypsies.” In some of the retellings of this story, Karen becomes a Gypsy.