-
De Stijl – Dancing Geometrical Forms
The artists of De Stijl were visionaries. Appalled by the horrors of war, these avant-garde artists sought to establish a new society. De Stijl envisaged a universal language that was neither representational, narrative, nor illustrative. Painting was but one aspect of their creative, revolutionary enterprise. The artistic community embodied architects, philosophers, poets, painters, designers, and… Read more
-
Polite Dance in the 16th & 17th c. Brothel
In my last post, I suggested that the iconic paintings of dancing peasants by Pieter Bruegel the Elder, his sons, peers, and followers, are so well-known that modern day audiences might overlook the abundance of polite dance images created in The Low Countries during the 16th and early 17th century. The previous post, therefore, delved… Read more
-
Court Dancing in the Age of Bruegel
Who is not familiar with Pieter Bruegel’s (1525 – 1569) iconic images of peasants dancing, drinking, and making merry? His son, Pieter Brueghel the Younger (1564 – 1638), together with many other Flemish and Dutch artists, emulated and developed the popular peasant theme. In fact, village scenes displaying hefty dancing peasants were so widespread that… Read more
-
To Rome we go
For the 16th-century artist Rome was the place to be. Dutch and Flemish artists, painters, engravers, and sculptors flocked to the Eternal City intrigued by Roman antiquity, inspired by Italian masters, and inquisitive about many artists, particularly Raphael and Michelangelo. The journey south was hazardous; Pieter Bruegel the Elder, for example, ventured over the Alps… Read more
-
Bamboccianti – Dance in Rome
Inspired by the great Italian masters of the Renaissance, artists of The Netherlands travelled to Rome, the unchallenged home of art. Maarten van Heemskerck, Karel van Mander, Pieter Bruegel the Elder, Hendrick Goltzius, and Peter Paul Rubens all ventured the hazardous journey to the south, as did many 17th century artists. These latter Flemish and… Read more
-
Dancing in the street
Apart from the two little girls in the foreground, preoccupied with their red and white stripped tooters, everyone surrounding the brazen centre figure is riveted by her outrageous dancing. Piet van de Hem (1885-1961), an artist who recurrently painted dance images, instantly draws the onlooker into the performing area, highlighting the bulky, earth bound dancer.… 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 