New Shoes captures a tender, personal moment, originating from a series of photographs taken during an outing with Anum’s nephew, who had just received a new pair of sneakers. The 2024 version presents this scene intimately, set beside a stony path near a lake. In the larger 2025 version, the same sunset park setting is retained, but the boy’s features are subtly altered by blending his likeness with that of his cousin. This deliberate shift moves the work beyond traditional portraiture, offering a more symbolic portrayal of youth. The painting continues Anum’s long-standing engagement with familial subjects, linking back to earlier portraits of the boy’s siblings, Asyraaf and Huda, exhibited in 2010.

The title New Shoes subtly shapes the viewer’s interpretation, anchoring the painting in themes of transition and potential. For Anum, new shoes symbolize new beginnings, prompting reflective questions like, “Where will you go, and what will you do next?” This sense of possibility is woven into both the 2024 and updated 2025 versions, the latter enriched by a vivid natural backdrop and symbolic details—such as a monkey sign—that suggest playfulness, evolution, and the unpredictability of life’s paths. The painting remains rooted in personal experience while inviting broader reflection. Anum’s signature red-toned imprimatura subtly emerges through the paint, enhancing the atmospheric quality and imbuing the sunset scene with warmth and emotional resonance.