Bulgarian Dancer, from the Dancing Women series (N186) issued by Wm. S. Kimball & Co. by William S. Kimball & Company

Bulgarian Dancer, from the Dancing Women series (N186) issued by Wm. S. Kimball & Co.

1889

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Artwork details

Medium
drawing, coloured-pencil, print
Dimensions
Sheet: 2 11/16 × 1 7/16 in. (6.9 × 3.7 cm)
Location
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Copyright
Public Domain

Tags

#portrait#drawing#coloured-pencil#print#impressionism#coloured pencil#watercolour illustration

About this artwork

This small lithograph of a Bulgarian dancer is part of the Dancing Women series, published by William S. Kimball & Co. The dancer is pictured mid-movement, her form dynamically arranged within a compact space. The artist used a palette of warm yellows and reds, contrasted with cooler blues and greens, endowing the figure with vitality. Note how the composition emphasizes a play between constraint and release, with the dancer’s flowing skirt and sash juxtaposed against the defined edges of her vest and headdress. Through a structuralist lens, this image can be seen as a system of signs. The dancer’s costume, pose, and even the chromatic scheme carry cultural codes, communicating ideas about ethnicity, gender, and performance. The image is not merely a depiction, but a structured articulation of cultural identity, inviting us to consider how such representations shape and reflect societal values.

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