Henri Matisse’s “The Dance” is more than just a painting; it’s an exploration of movement, emotion, and the very essence of human expression. Commissioned in 1909 by Sergei Shchukin, a prominent Russian industrialist, this large-scale piece was intended to adorn the spiral staircase of Shchukin’s Moscow mansion, the Trubetskoy Palace. While the well-known Dance I residing at MoMA is often presented as a finished work, Matisse himself considered it a preparatory study for the final, more impactful version. Comparing these two versions offers a fascinating insight into Matisse’s artistic process and the evolution of his vision for “The Dance Painting”.
Dance I: Capturing Joy and Spontaneity in “the Dance Painting”
Dance I, though a full-scale oil painting, embodies a sense of initial exploration and captures a lighter, more carefree spirit. Echoing the joyful essence of his earlier Fauvist masterpiece, “Bonheur de Vivre,” the figures in Dance I exude pleasure and uninhibited joy. Matisse’s rendering here is deliberately loose, with minimal internal detailing, giving the dancers an almost doll-like quality, freely moving and unrestrained. This seemingly childlike spontaneity, however, is a product of Matisse’s deliberate artistic choices. He consciously moved away from traditional representational techniques to create an image where the form perfectly aligns with the content – pure, unadulterated joy. Imagine, for a moment, if Matisse had chosen a rigid, academic style reminiscent of Jacques Louis David. The sense of playfulness and sheer delight would undoubtedly be lost, highlighting Matisse’s mastery in conveying emotion through form and style in “the dance painting”.
The setting of Dance I further contributes to its open and airy feel. The dancers inhabit a vibrant field of blue and green, colors that invite interpretation. While some might perceive the green as a grassy hilltop and the blue as the sky above, others might see the blue as water receding into the distance. This spatial ambiguity is intentional, reflecting a central theme in modern painting: the tension between creating the illusion of depth and acknowledging the inherent flatness of the canvas. Another noteworthy aspect is the break in the circle of dancers. The hands of the two foremost figures are intentionally parted, a deliberate choice by Matisse to introduce a point of tension and perhaps, an invitation for the viewer to join the dance, as the break occurs closest to our vantage point.
The Transformation to “The Dance”: A Shift Towards Ritual and Intensity
The final version of The Dance undergoes a profound transformation, evolving into a piece with a dramatically different emotional landscape. Where Dance I radiated joy, The Dance evokes feelings of something more primal and intense – often described as forbidding, menacing, tribal, ritualistic, even demonic. The lighthearted pleasure of the initial sketch is replaced by an almost rhythmic intensity, as if the painting pulsates with the beat of drums. This significant shift in mood is achieved through several artistic techniques, most notably a change in color palette. Beyond the obvious color shift, the figures in the 1910 canvas are rendered with more internal lines, lines that contribute to a sense of tension and raw physical power, particularly evident in the back left figure.
Another subtle yet impactful change lies in how the dancers interact with the ground. In Dance I, the green field rises to meet the feet of the dancers at the back, creating a sense of lightness. In The Dance, however, the green appears to compress beneath the weight of the dancers, grounding them and adding to the overall feeling of weight and intensity. These subtle yet deliberate alterations reveal Matisse’s meticulous approach and his deep understanding of how artistic choices shape perception and emotion in “the dance painting”. It is a crucial reminder that Matisse’s seemingly simple style was not naive or accidental, but rather the result of masterful control and a clear artistic vision.
In conclusion, examining both Dance I and The Dance provides a unique window into Matisse’s artistic evolution and his profound ability to manipulate form, color, and space to evoke distinct emotional responses. From the joyful spontaneity of the initial sketch to the ritualistic intensity of the final masterpiece, “the dance painting” stands as a testament to Matisse’s enduring legacy as a master of modern art and a profound explorer of human emotion through movement and form.
