Artwork
Dancing Negro
Dancing Negro is a watercolor work on paper by the Art Brut artist Lance Thackeray. It dates from 1910 and is held in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum. This 1910 watercolor portrays a standing figure holding a lyre‑like stringed instrument.
About this work
Overview
This 1910 watercolor portrays a standing figure holding a lyre‑like stringed instrument. He is dressed in a striped tunic, a green apron, and a headdress crowned with two curved horns, with a bag slung across his shoulder. The scene is set against a stone wall that includes a doorway on the right side of the composition.
Subject & Meaning
The figure appears to be engaged in music, suggesting a ritual or celebratory moment. The inclusion of the horned headdress and the instrument points to a cultural context in which music and costume play a role in communal identity, though the original title employed language now recognized as offensive.
Technique & Style
Executed in watercolor, the work employs muted tones that lend a soft, intimate atmosphere. The delicate washes contrast with the figure’s dynamic stance, creating a balance between subtle coloration and a sense of movement.
History & Provenance
The image was reproduced in the 1910 volume The People of Egypt within the Peoples of the World series published by A. & C. Black. It entered the museum’s collection after being acquired from dealer R. Appleby in August 1967 for £2.
Context
The illustration was part of an early twentieth‑century ethnographic series aimed at documenting diverse cultures. Its visual style reflects contemporary Western approaches to representing non‑European subjects, often through a lens of exoticism.
Artist & collection
Artist
Lance Thackeray was the kind of artist who painted people instead of posing for them.
