The Dance 

Alex Gross painted "The Dance," a compelling image, using oil on canvas. Here, we see a young man absorbed in his phone, seemingly oblivious to the figure behind him. The figure is draped in a black leather jacket, complete with a Prada bag, and sports a ram skull for a head. Gross's work often reflects contemporary society's obsessions and anxieties. Looking at the image, we can see how the image evokes our increasing dependence on technology, and a sense of disconnection from the world around us. Is the ram-skull figure some kind of capitalist demon? The brand names point to the intersection of commerce and culture in the twenty-first century. The polka dot motif adds a light tone to the image, which is jarring considering the skull. To truly understand "The Dance," we could look at works on contemporary art and popular culture, media studies, and even the history of advertising. What does it mean for an artist to use the languages of commercial advertising, and how can this imagery act as a critique of our social values?