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From Bruegel to Teniers – Dancing at the Feast of Saint George
The tale of Saint George slaying the dragon is woven into Christian tradition. In numerous regions across the globe, the twenty-third of April is celebrated as the Feast of St. George. In the Middle Ages and Renaissance, the inhabitants of the Low Countries, while faithfully honouring this Christian festival, also saw an opportunity for boisterous… Read more
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Halloween – Which witch is that?
Halloween conjures up visions of witches and the hideously bizarre creatures that inhabit her reign. Artists in the Low Countries have depicted the witch and her entourage, from macabre rodents and roaches to centipedes, since the era of the illuminated manuscript. This post explores fantastical dancing beings and capering creatures who would feel comfortable at… Read more
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David Teniers the Younger – Dance
An extensive online list presents nine hundred and twenty-three works by David Teniers the Younger (1610-1690). The Wikidata list featuring related thumbnails, labels, places, and creation dates provides a glimpse into the varied oeuvre of the prolific Flemish Baroque artist. Teniers the Younger, son of the illustrious artist David Teniers the Elder, was celebrated for… Read more
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Dance Pretty Lady
Is it her beauty, her poise, or the sheer dynamics of her movements that capture the visual artist’s imagination? Or is it the woman concealed by the illusion of theatricality that mesmerises the artist? Dancers have inspired artists throughout history. Edgar Degas immortalised the hard-working ballet girl at the Paris Opera. Toulouse-Lautrec celebrated the performers… Read more
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From Minuet to Tango
An elegant minuet, staged in an idyllic garden, is not exactly what one would expect from a 19th-century Dutch artist. The celebrated artist Frederik Hendrik Kaemmerer (1839-1902), however, specialised in traditional French genre scenes. In 1865, Kaemmerer travelled to Paris to study with the distinguished French academic artist Jean-Léon Gérôme. In no time at all,… Read more
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Let’s Dance
Scenes of whirling dancers in a dance hall, a café dansant, or an elegant ballroom have inspired visual artists throughout the ages. This blog has regularly addressed the artist’s portrayal of social dancing. Therefore, before exploring a further collection of late 19th- and 20th-century images, permit me a quick revisit to some stimulating paintings by… Read more
14th century 15th century 16th century 17th century 18th century 19th century 20th century 21st century Adriaen Brouwer Adriaen Pietersz. van de Venne Adriaen van Ostade Albrecht Dürer Alma-Tadema art Arthurian Legends Bal des Ardents ballet Bergen School Bernard Picart Burgundian Court CoBrA Constant Cornelis Dusart Cornelis Massijs dance Dance/Dancers Dance around the Golden Calf dancers David Ryckaert III David Teniers the Younger David Vinckboons De Stijl Egg dance Else Berg Erhard Schön Flemish Art Frans Francken II Frans Huysmans George Hendrik Breitner Gertrud Leistikow Gillis Mostaert Hans Bol Hans Vredeman de Vries Harmen Meurs Henri Braakensiek Herman Bieling Hieronymus Bosch Hieronymus Francken the Younger illuminated manuscript Isaac Israels Isaac van Ostade Jacob Grimmer Jacob Savery I Jacobus van Looy Jan Brueghel the Elder Jan Mandijn & followers Jan Miense Molenaer Jan Sierhuis Jan Sluijters Jan Steen Jan Toorop Jean-Baptiste Vanmour Jean de Wavrin Jean Froissart Karel Appel Karel van Mander Kees Maks Kees van Dongen Leo Gestel Loyset Liédet Lucas van Valckenborch Maarten van Heemskerck Maastricht Hours Marius Bauer Marten van Cleve Mommie Schwarz Mondrian Paolo Fiammingo/Pauwels Franck Pieter Aertsen Pieter Balten/Peeter Baltens Pieter Bruegel the Elder Pieter Brueghel the Younger Pieter Codde Pieter de Bloot Pieter van der Borcht Pieter van der Heyden Piet Mondrian Piet van der Hem Romance of Alexander Roman de la Rose Rothschild Canticles Salome Sebald Beham Simon Bening Tango Theo van Doesburg Toer van Schayk Vilmos Huszár Vincent van Gogh Willem de Zwart
About me
As a young aspiring dancer I loved to ponder over the magnificent paintings created by Edgar Degas. How his ballerinas inspired me. The atmosphere of the Paris Opera, the beautiful tutus and the hard working dancers never failed to trigger my imagination. As the years past, I retained my love of dance, of Degas, of art, and developed an interest in knowing more about the cross fertilization between art and dance.
DANCE IMAGES IN THE ART OF THE NETHERLANDS 