Ionian dancing girl 1902

John William Godward made 'Ionian dancing girl' with oil paint at some point in his career. The way Godward layers and blends his colors, almost airbrush-like, it's like he's trying to dissolve the evidence of his own hand. Check out the folds in the dancer’s yellow dress, the way it bunches and drapes; he's chasing after the illusion of three-dimensionality. He's really going for it, trying to create something hyper-real. Look closely at the marble, see how he recreates that polished, slick surface. You can imagine him totally absorbed in capturing the visual world. You know, it’s interesting to think about artists like Alma-Tadema, who were also into this classical world. But what I find myself wondering is, what would happen if you messed with that surface? What would happen if you really went at it, scraped it back, or added layers? It's about embracing uncertainty, and opening up possibilities, right?