New York City (Dance Class), 1977
Gelatin silver print
Image size: 8 × 12 in.\
Sheet size: 11 × 14 in.
Signed, titled, and dated in pencil on verso
December 16, 2024
While many photographers have found inspiration in capturing children at play, Elliott Erwitt seems to invite us to see them here as small adults in training. While this bunch doesn't appear ready for a ballroom dancing competition, they radiate a sweetly unpolished charm nonetheless, right down to the center boy's cowlick. Erwitt’s favorite subject was people—going so far as to say that he “disliked” landscapes—with dogs coming in a close second. Over his more than six decade career, his photos graced museum walls and magazine pages, and this picture radiates the warmth and kind-hearted amusement that was key to his works' enduring popularity.
