Around 1909, in the midst of the Dresden “Brücke” years, Kirchner's fascination with dance found its way into his oeuvre in the form of drawings, prints and paintings of dancers, in which he explored the world of the cabaret, dance and movement, creating absolutely significant motifs up into his late period in the 1930s.
Kirchner made his first sketches of performances on visits to dance cafés and nightclubs such as 'Central Theater' or 'Victoria Salon'. In his studio, the artist developed the sketches into elaborate compositions that were no less dynamic and animated.
The pastel offered here captivates us with the realism of the almost immaterial play of lines, hatching and colors. Kirchner sees the dancer's body in a fading climax of movement: a pause between the rise and fall of tension, that brief moment in which the dance movement comes to completion. The dancer pauses for just a small, imperceptible moment and seems to float on the stage, as if time stood still.

Dance in general, but erotic dance in particular fascinated Kirchner. Physical vitality reveals itself to the observer in an unadulterated way. In the fast-paced movement, the dancer's skirt is lifted, showing her ruffled underwear. The stage is meticulously outlined with just a few sketched props. Kirchner united the dance performance in a fervent rhythm of colors, giving viewers a feeling of being part of the exciting evening with elegant dance and throbbing music. Kirchner not only paid homage to dance performances with this grainy, brittle pastel and color chalk drawing, as he made further drawings of this dancer in a similar, rapid style, elaborating the dancer's demanding choreographic poses on paper. Finally, the experience sketched on site can be also be found in the grand painting “Varieté (English Dancing Couple)” (c. 1909/10-1926, Städel Museum, Frankfurt am Main), in which the dancer is elegantly led across the stage by her partner. [MvL/CH]