Tänzerinnen 1928 - 1930

These dancers by Ernst Ludwig Kirchner are made with watercolor paint, which bleeds and drips, making them seem fluid and in motion. Imagine him with a brush loaded with color, moving it lightly across the paper, letting the water do its thing. It's all about capturing a fleeting moment. I see Kirchner, maybe in a club, rapidly sketching with whatever materials he has to hand. He’s trying to catch the essence of these women, but not in a photographically accurate way. It’s like, how do you paint the feeling of music, the blur of movement, the shimmer of light on skin? Look at the way the colors overlap and blend – a purple shadow melting into a pink dress, a blue outline barely containing the form. What matters is the energy, the vitality. Kirchner is in conversation with artists like Matisse, who use color and line in similarly expressive ways. It's an ongoing conversation, a dance between observation and emotion, and Kirchner invites us to join in.