Schutz first came to attention in 2002 with her debut exhibition Frank from Observation (2002) at LFL gallery (which then became Zach Feuer Gallery). This show was based on the conceit of Schutz as the last painter, representing the last subject "Frank". Since then her fictive subjects have ranged from people who can eat themselves, a gravity fanatic, imaginary births and deaths, public/private performers, awkward situations, and mundane objects. On the occasion Schutz's museum retrospective at the Neuberger Museum, New York Times critic Karen Rosenberg wrote: "Ms. Schutz has become a reliable conjurer of wickedly grotesque creatures and absurd situations, willed into existence by her vigorous and wildly colorful brush strokes." She concludes, "Again and again Ms. Schutz has challenged herself to come up with a subject that's too awkward, gross, impractical or invisible to paint. But she has yet to find one that stumps her." In Shoe, 2002, Dana Schutz portrays a single grey shoe above a sticky blue material that resembles gum, seemingly stuck on a bold orange traffic line.
