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Michael
Michael
@mdstamper.bsky.social
8 months ago
Considered the mother of modern dance in the United States, Martha Graham brought dance into the vortex of the machine age: the idea of motion was a fundamental tenet of modernism, and Graham was determined to extract dance from its balletic—and European—classicism and infuse it with “significant movement, . . . with excitement and surge.” She studied at Ruth St. Denis and Ted Shawn’s Denishawn School from 1916 to 1923 and then worked at the Greenwich Village Follies, where she began to design and choreograph her own dances. By 1935, she had established the Martha Graham School for Contemporary Dance, and its first performance, “Frontier,” reflected her notion that “life today is nervous, sharp, and zigzag.” Graham continued to perform until she was 76 and created new ballets until her death. Paul Raphael Meltsner was an American artist who was widely recognized for his Works Progress Administration (WPA) era paintings and lithographs, and who was later known for his iconic portraits of celebrities in the performing arts. Here he depicts Graham performing on a low, dark brown rectangular platform, which itself rests on a larger, darker circular base. She's wearing a long, dark reddish-brown robe, the velvet-like fabric appearing heavy. The robe has a simple, almost monastic cut, with long sleeves and a high neckline. Graham’s posture is somewhat slumped, her body leaning slightly to her right, and her gaze directed somewhat downward and to her right. She holds a long, dark brown staff or stick, which rests across her lap. Her tight hand rests gently on the staff, while her other hand rests on the platform beside her. A translucent, dark-colored veil falls over her head and shoulders, partially obscuring her face. Her hair is dark and pulled back from her face, with a dark band above her forehead. Graham’s face is pale, and her expression solemn, focused with her lips slightly parted. The background is a deep, dark blue that suggests a shadowed alcove.

Considered the mother of modern dance in the United States, Martha Graham brought dance into the vortex of the machine age: the idea of motion was a fundamental tenet of modernism, and Graham was determined to extract dance from its balletic—and European—classicism and infuse it with “significant movement, . . . with excitement and surge.” She studied at Ruth St. Denis and Ted Shawn’s Denishawn School from 1916 to 1923 and then worked at the Greenwich Village Follies, where she began to design and choreograph her own dances. By 1935, she had established the Martha Graham School for Contemporary Dance, and its first performance, “Frontier,” reflected her notion that “life today is nervous, sharp, and zigzag.” Graham continued to perform until she was 76 and created new ballets until her death. Paul Raphael Meltsner was an American artist who was widely recognized for his Works Progress Administration (WPA) era paintings and lithographs, and who was later known for his iconic portraits of celebrities in the performing arts. Here he depicts Graham performing on a low, dark brown rectangular platform, which itself rests on a larger, darker circular base. She's wearing a long, dark reddish-brown robe, the velvet-like fabric appearing heavy. The robe has a simple, almost monastic cut, with long sleeves and a high neckline. Graham’s posture is somewhat slumped, her body leaning slightly to her right, and her gaze directed somewhat downward and to her right. She holds a long, dark brown staff or stick, which rests across her lap. Her tight hand rests gently on the staff, while her other hand rests on the platform beside her. A translucent, dark-colored veil falls over her head and shoulders, partially obscuring her face. Her hair is dark and pulled back from her face, with a dark band above her forehead. Graham’s face is pale, and her expression solemn, focused with her lips slightly parted. The background is a deep, dark blue that suggests a shadowed alcove.

“Martha Graham” by Paul R Meltsner (American) - Oil on canvas / 1938 - National Portrait Gallery (Washington DC) #WomenInArt #ArtText #art #artwork #dancer #PortraitofaWoman #PaulMeltsner #Meltsner #MarthaGraham #NationalPortraitGallery #Smithsonian #OilPainting #BlueskyArt #AmericanArt #AmericanArt

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