CC0 · no rights reserved
The Fire Dance
From the collection of Smithsonian American Art Museum. Free to download, adapt and use — no permission needed.
About this work
The Fire Dance is one of many works that grew out of Louis Potter’s experiences with the native cultures in Alaska. It is possible that the artist saw a fire dance ceremony, popular with many Native American nations at the time. The graceful lines of the arms and the legs and the exaggerated, forward motion of the dancer capture the intensity of this ritual, which the participants regarded as a joyful battle with nature’s elements.
Smithsonian American Art Museum’s own descriptionSubjects
Credit lineThe Fire Dance. 1907. Louis Potter, born Troy, NY 1873-died Seattle, WA 1912. Smithsonian American Art Museum, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Mrs. George R. Percy. CC0.
