Dancers Brings NPG’s ‘Silhouettes’ to Life (photos)


Inspired by the exhibition “Black Out: Silhouettes Then and Now,” the dance company of Dana Tai Soon Burgess, choreographer-in-residence at the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery, premiered a modern dance work called “Silhouettes” on Oct. 27 and 30.

Incorporating video by designer Kelly Colburn, the work was performed to capacity audiences in the gallery’s Nan Tucker McEvoy Auditorium.

As the Portrait Gallery’s first choreographer-in-residence, Burgess finds inspiration for original works in the paintings and photographs that hang there. NPG Director Kim Sajet sat down for a conversation with Burgess at the conclusion of the last performance, thanking the choreographer for “bringing our exhibition to life.”

Curated by Asma Naeem, the gallery’s curator of prints, drawings and media arts, the exhibition is the first in a major museum to explore cut-paper profiles in terms of their historical roots and contemporary presence. While drawing on the National Portrait Gallery’s extensive collection of silhouettes, it also examines how contemporary artists are “reimagining silhouettes in bold and unforgettable ways.” The show runs thru March 10, 2019.

View Jeff Malet’s photos from the Dana Tai Soon Burgess Dance Company’s performances of “Silhouettes” at the National Portrait Gallery, and from the exhibition “Black Out: Silhouettes Then and Now,” by clicking on the photo icons below.

 

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