Lords of the Dance

In the May Art Poll By Bob, I asked you to tell me which elements of Art Blog By Bob you liked the most and the least. The results were a mixed bag in some ways, but it was nice to know that the profile pieces commemorating an artist’s birthday, book reviews of art books and exhibition catalogues, reviews of art exhibits, and personal reflections on art and art history help brighten your day and, perhaps, enlighten your life. Thank you, too, to those who pointed out what you disliked about the blog. I can’t guarantee that I’ll ever stop with the frothing liberal rants (based entirely on undisputable fact!) and literary musings related to art (Melville-related and not), but I can guarantee that adorable pictures of Alex will always be a part of this blog as long as he’s a part of my life. It sounds like some people need either to learn the definition of adorable or have a very warm spot in the afterlife awaiting them. I hope it’s humid, too.

For the June Art Poll By Bob, in honor of Kristi Yamaguchi winning this season’s Dancing with the Stars (above), I thought I’d ask, “Which of the following paintings of dance is your favorite?”:


Edgar Degas, Blue Dancers (1898)

Henri Matisse, Dance (II) (1910)

Pablo Picasso, The Three Dancers (1925)

Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Dance at Bougival (1883)

John Singer Sargent, El Jaleo (1882)

Obviously, this is a very short, very personal list. I could have created a whole list solely of Degas’ paintings, but I chose my favorite to represent him. Please feel free to nominate your favorite dance-related paintings in the comments, with a link to the painting itself, if possible. And, yes, Annie and I watch DWTS religiously, debating the merits of each Paso Doble and Quickstep while rooting for our favorites. If you don’t think dancing is a demanding sport, just ask Jason Taylor.