Artist Derek Harrison Paints
The Spirit of Fiesta
“The Spirit of Fiesta” painting, which adorns this year’s official poster for Old Spanish Days, features a dancer suffused in a light that seems to emanate from inside of her. She is in a pulsating pose, with her dress spinning while her right arm extends to hold a mantilla that swirls all around her. Her body and shawl form a dynamic letter “S” in the middle of the frame — and it is this shape that builds a sense of propulsion in the composition. The painter’s brushwork enhances the movement and urgency, with austere contrasts between light and darkness that highlight the dancer’s form and the power of the performance. The supple paint strokes subsidize the painting’s vivacious, almost improvisational feel. The artwork is practically monochromatic — her dress is red; the curtains behind her are a deeper crimson — and the background is almost pure black. The lack of a barrier between the viewer and dancer helps create the illusion that we are present at the actual event.
The creator, artist Derek Harrison, was inspired by the flamenco dancing he’d witnessed and studied in the past during Fiesta. But he was particularly influenced by John Singer Sargent’s masterpiece “El Jaleo” (1882) — on display at Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston — which similarly depicts a Spanish dancer performing to the accompaniment of musicians. Sargent’s inducement on Harrison goes deeper. The dramatic usage of the several contrasting red tones in Harrison’s work recalls another Sargent masterpiece, “Dr. Pozzi at Home” (1881), which illustrates a doctor in a sensuous scarlet robe standing in front of a burgundy curtain. Red is a color that evokes strong emotions, and its use in the Fiesta painting contributes to the overall sense of vivacity and intensity.
This year’s Fiesta poster, in my humble opinion, is the best ever, and the painting used in it is a notable example of Harrison’s skilled ability to capture the heart of the subject through classical technique and a sharp eye for specificity. As you observe the work, you can almost imagine hearing the sound of the zapateado (footwork), pitos (finger snaps in flamenco), palmas (hand clapping), and possibly the echoes of the cante (singing), and toque (guitars). There’s drama in this canvas: mood, energy, and strong, visceral arrangement…