The connection of the lines on the figure in Derain’s “The Dance” to the incised lines on prehistoric female figurines is my own, not Derain’s. There is no reason to think he was looking back that far to find inspiration in art objects. “‘Primitivism’ in 20th Century Modern Art”, edited by William Rubin, the extensive companion book to an exhibit in the 80’s at the Museum of Modern Art, points to Polynesian sculptures (by way of Gauguin’s wood carvings) and Derain’s own collection of African masks as his primary “primitive” influences. One Fang mask he owned, in particular, shows the same stylization of a face that is on his dancer in his painting – as well as on Matisse’s 1913 portrait of Madame Matisse and many other early modern art examples. And I retain that Fang stylization in my face design for the bodypainting.
In developing a Derain-based bodypainting concept I look for my own connections to source material as well as researching his. So, as his colorful lines remind me of lines on ancient female figurines I incorporate that pattern into the design. I make an effort to reach back further than the modern artists I am studying because of my perception that the tribal objects they were inspired by also have an older source of inspiration. I am connecting it all back to the primal art: bodyart.
I also look for an internal storyline for my designs, what I think of as the adventure part of creating a new design. So, those incised figurines in combination with his dancing figure lead me back to “The Horned Goddess”, a striking image of a decorated dancing figure in a rock painting in the Sahara region of Africa. It’s such a remarkable painting that you can find it in just about any book about prehistoric art. She becomes my icon for this “ancient dancer” I am re-creating through the lens of Derain in my bodypaint design.
Just before I sent the finished artwork for my book off to the publisher in late 2006 I was playing with putting prehistoric rock art on people’s faces, and I painted the Horned Goddess onto the face of one of our facepainters (Jennifer) at an event, for a foto for the book. It was a kid’s event, so I left her breasts off the facepainting.
