Sylvia Radford

My Ballet series is inspired by Nicolas Poussin’s A Dance to the Music of Time (c. 1634–6), exploring ideas around identity, agency, and performativity. Looking back at my studio documentation, it's fascinating to see how the work evolved. I always had a clear vision for the characters and knew I wanted to use masking tape to fragment the space, but the background took time to figure out. The final concept, a flattened, abstract theatrical backdrop, only clicked late in the game after a few different sketched trials.

Image 1: Dance to Whose Music? (Diptych), 2025, Oil on canvas, 92x152cm
Images 2-5: Work in Progress on the work
Image 6: Nicolas Poussin, A Dance to the Music of Time, (c1634-6)

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