Dancers 1963

Emilio Grau Sala captured these dancers with oils most likely on canvas, though maybe panel, who can say? I love how the artist's touch is so visible; you can really feel the hand moving across the surface, building up the image in layers. There’s a sense of searching, of constant adjustment, as if the painting itself is a dance between intention and accident. Imagine Sala's studio – probably full of sketches, maybe a little chaotic. He’s trying to nail down that fleeting moment of grace, the way light catches the tulle of a tutu. I’m drawn to the way he’s used blues and yellows against these flashes of red. It’s not about perfect representation; it’s about capturing the feeling of the dance. Painters are always in conversation, borrowing and riffing off each other’s ideas. I bet Sala was looking at Degas, at the way he captured movement and light. But Sala brings his own flavor, a kind of raw energy. It reminds us that painting is about feeling and touch. So, let’s celebrate that messiness and uncertainty, and find our own dance within it.