For my next effort mood in art, I have chosen “Dance around the Golden Calf,” by the German Expressionist painter, Emil Nolde. In contrast to the dull colors, hard edges, and careful draftmanship of Hopper’s painting, Nolde’s painting is warm, exuberant, and loose.

The painting depicts a Biblical story in which Moses comes down the mountain from communing with God to find the Israelites worshiping a golden idol.  In Nolde’s painting, the crudely painted dancers raise their arms in ecstasy or frenzy, almost gyrating off the canvas.… Read More

For my next effort mood in art, I have chosen the American artist Edward Hopper’s 1953 painting, “Office in a Small City.”

In contrast to the hard-working laundresses in Degas painting, Hopper depicts a man sitting idly at his desk, staring out the window at the rooftops of the buildings across the street.

The painting is said to reprise Hopper’s signature subjects – a solitary figure, physically and emotionally detached from his surrounding and other people. The viewer is left to wonder – what is the man doing? … Read More

For my first artwork, I have chosen a painting by the French impressionist, Edgar Degas.  While he is famous for his depictions of ballet dancers, Degas had a fascination with everyday activities and humble labor.

For example, he created 30 depictions of working-class women doing the washing and ironing. I particularly like his 1884 painting, “The Laundresses.”

This work shows a clear effort contrast between two women.  One is engrossed in ironing a garment.  She is focused downwards and clearly Pressing with the heavy iron.  … Read More

Everything we do in life, whether physical, mental, or emotional, requires energy, or from Laban’s perspective – effort.  In fact, he found effort everywhere, not only in physical activities but also in “the expression of inner states of mind and emotions.”  Because works of art capture various states of mind and emotions, we can also find effort in art.

In this month’s blogs, I discuss several paintings and illustrations by well-known artists that that express an state or drive, conveying a mood that can be described in effort terms.… Read More

Knute Rockne was the inspirational Notre Dame coach who revolutionized football with the forward pass and intricate backfield formations.  He wasn’t afraid to learn from dancers.

His team was undefeated in 1924, in part because Rockne borrowed choreography from a Chicago chorus line.

The film, Knute Rockne All American, shows the coach treating his team to a night in the theatre.  While the players enjoy the girls, Rockne is making notes on the chorus line maneuvers.  Later, with piano accompaniment, he rehearses four players with his adapted choreography for the football field.… Read More

Embodied knowledge remains undervalued.  In particular the American public shows little interest in dance, until it is turned into a televised competitive sport like “So You Think You Can Dance.” Yet what dancers know has a history of meaningful applications beyond the concert stage and TV screen.

In the following blogs, I chronicle how knowledge and skills developed in the discipline of dance have found useful applications in a variety of other fields.

 … Read More