Summary

This supple, camel/cream coloured leather remnant is sporadically cut and indicates the leather types and colours Stanio Fancoff used within his shoemaking business between the 1930s and 1970s. Along with many other samples, this leather piece was an integral part of the shoemaker's kit that provide aesthetic diversity to his shoemaking craft.

Stanio Ivanoff Fancoff was born in 1908 in Bojentsi, a small village in Bulgaria. At age 11, Stanio left home to learn the shoemaking trade. In 1929, he immigrated to Melbourne, settled in Fitzroy and began to work for the V.G. Zemancheff & Sons basket shoe factory in South Melbourne. In1936, he married Dorotea Georgi Touzou who had recently arrived in Australia. Around this time, Stanio set up his own shoemaking business from home, with Georgi, her cousin and sister weaving the shoes which he then assembled. Select shoe samples were then taken to Sydney and Tasmania for sale. In 1942, Georgi and Stanio moved to Broken Hill for Georgi's health; there daughter Nancy was born and Stanio set up a shoe shop/factory. In 1945, Georgi died and by 1950 Stanio and Nancy had moved to Adelaide where he again opened a shoemaking business and shop. He passed away in 1978, having been in the shoemaking business for 59 years. This collection documents his migration and working life experiences.

Physical Description

Large, supple, camel/cream coloured leather. Sporadically cut, this piece has no definitive outer shape but off centre are two eye shaped holes of approximately 2.5 x 1cm. Furthermore, the leather has several random folds and appears to have numerous areas that appear lighter in colour to the overall tanned colour. While the front side has been buffed, the reverse remains in a natural state showings is textured fibre surface. Furthermore, the reverse side leather is a light brown hue with a single area in a lighter colour, suggesting possible surface scratching.

Significance

This collection is significant in documenting a small migrant business as well as the fashion of a particular period. It is well provenanced and charts the application of trade skills in a new country. It also illustrates the stages of hand shoe manufacture from the 1930s, demonstrating the enduring nature of the tools and patterns that were used.

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