Dancers have been drawn, painted, and photographed for as long as they have been around. But just what do they look like when not moving for an audience?
David Perkins presents an answer. The photographer has been snapping shots of dancers for more than a decade, but somewhere along the line found that his job had become less of an opportunity and more like work. The inevitable expenses and hassles of finding studios, lighting, and hair and makeup artists for a shoot had taken their toll. That’s when Perkins decided to photograph dancers in their natural element.
Writing for Bored Panda, Perkins says, “I tried to think of a type of project I could do. What had been done before? Everything had been done before. But then I realized, that was a lie. Dancers are almost always seen performing. They are seen on stage, or on the screen, or even out around New York City among the many landmarks. What you never see are dancers at home, just being themselves. So that is what I began to focus on. Dancers in their Home Stage. No lights. No studios. No hair or make up done. Just dancers being themselves… well, sort of.”
In Perkins’ “Home Stage” series, we see that dance is not just a career but a way of life: often stretching, flexing, and pirouetting as they go about daily activities, Perkins’ photographed dancers offer a more lyrical approach to life’s mundane tasks. See how your daily routine compares in the photographs below:
By Erin Kelly | All That Is Interesting
