While wandering around the beautiful streets of Charleston last weekend, I stumbled upon this beautiful sculpture in one of the many green, leafy, and fragrant alley ways of the downtown streets.
The sculpture is entitled 'Illumination', by Kenneth G Ryden, and I was struck by the whimsy of the dancer, her beautiful lines, and youth. I always get excited when I see traces of dance and dance influences in everyday things, and this little dancer was such a pleasant surprise to find as I was discovering Charleston's many charms. She reminds me a bit of Degas' Little Ballerina; the blue of her dress is reminiscent of the pink piece of ribbon that Degas used to polish off his famous sculpture. It always amazes me how artists can convey movement through their art; it's something as a dancer that you would think comes easy, but I've always found that dance is deceptive that way. To me, dancing is the framework that allows movement to happen. The technique and the rules of dance are so demanding that actual movement can be lost in translation. Accessing movement and investing in it to portray to an audience or public is a very personal, and often difficult thing. I always admire artists who can show movement in their work.
I hope this little dancer has moved and perhaps illuminated you as she did for me.
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