Den scenevante. Danserinde 1935 - 1939

H.P. Pedersen-Dan created this small bronze sculpture called "The Stage-Wise: Dancer" at an unknown date, but given that he lived between 1859 and 1939, we can assume it was made sometime around the turn of the century. The figure emerges from the bronze, with marks that suggest it was roughly hewn, not smoothed. I find myself thinking about how the marks, or rather the artist's hand, feels simultaneously bold and tentative, like the touch of a person uncertain of their feelings, but brave enough to follow them anyway. I love how the cloth twists and spirals around her body and how the form seems caught between solidity and ethereal lightness. The gesture, the cloth held aloft, has a real sense of drama. Like Degas's sculptures of dancers, there's an exploration of movement and form here, but also a quietness, a sense of a fleeting moment captured in a permanent medium. Ultimately, sculpture like this, is as much about capturing a feeling, or an idea, as it is about representing reality. It’s about opening up a space for our imagination.