Two ballerinas resting 1969

Curator: Jean Jansem's "Two Ballerinas Resting," a pencil drawing created in 1969, offers an intimate look into the lives of these performers. What's your initial impression? Editor: Utterly drained, but beautiful. There’s something about the slump of their shoulders and the way their bodies melt into the floor that feels so vulnerable, yet strangely resilient. Like watching moonlight flicker across tired limbs. Curator: Jansem’s process is interesting here. We see visible marks of the pencil on paper, really highlighting the physical act of creation and how labor relates to the theme, what we often view from the audience. Editor: Absolutely! And it's not just about the labor of the dance, is it? The work has its own physical exertion, you know? Those scratchy pencil lines practically scream the artist's own effort in capturing that feeling of spent energy. Plus the rapid strokes give a very immediate feel for the ephemeral grace the women must try to produce. Curator: Note how he uses the negative space as much as the lines themselves. It almost feels like the drawing is emerging from a mist of exhaustion. Editor: It's like they are dissolving back into the very essence of movement and strain! And there’s a stark contrast between the heavy, grounded feel of the composition and the weightlessness we usually associate with ballerinas. Sort of plays on our expectations, doesn't it? They aren't mid-leap but down-to-earth. Curator: Precisely. By using pencil, a seemingly humble medium, Jansem strips away any pretension often associated with high art and elevates the often unseen moments to centre stage. The ballerinas are a nude study, not intended as an erotic one, but perhaps hinting towards revealing a different facet of nude work in art. Editor: It also forces you to focus on the raw physicality, the sheer effort etched into their postures, which for me amplifies the humanity. Almost feels sacred to witness something usually kept out of view from audience expectations. I'm so curious to see more studies on ballerinas portrayed this way. Curator: A beautiful interpretation! Thank you. Editor: My pleasure! It always makes my artistic mind run to all kinds of places, so thank you for having me along.