Three Pigs Dancing 

Scott Gustafson, born in 1956, created "Three Pigs Dancing," though the exact date remains unknown. The painting invites a dialogue between familiar childhood narratives and the often-unseen realities of class and survival. Gustafson cleverly places the dancing pigs not in their expected straw, stick, or brick houses, but inside a kitchen replete with the promise of a stewing cauldron. This scene subtly shifts the fairy tale narrative, drawing on histories where survival is a daily performance. The pigs, instruments in hand, become symbols of resilience, their music and dance a form of resistance against the precarity of their existence. Consider how this contrasts with the original tale, which often simplifies the complexities of socio-economic status and security. Gustafson reframes the story with a tender understanding of the emotional labor required to find joy and community, even when the wolf is always at the door.