Shoes...

It was reported that Vincent bought these workman’s boots at a flea market, intending to use them in a still life. Finding them still a little too smart, however, he wore them on a long and rainy walk. Only then were they fit to be painted.

To him, as to several of his contemporaries, they may have been symbolic of the hard yet picturesque life of the laborer and reference to Van Gogh’s difficult passage through life.

In the desert, the shoes cost a lot, wear off badly and quickly. Showing the sole of your shoe to someone in the Arab world is a sign of extreme disrespect. Throwing your shoe is even worse." 

In Egypt, a Syrian throwing his shoe at Ahmadinejad, after an affectionate welcome from Egypt's new Islamist president. Earlier, an Iraqi journalist throwing his shoes at George Bush.

What a painting. Just an {expressionist's} thought.