Sean Palfrey: Dance

Dance showcases Sean Palfrey’s creative vision in a beautiful suite of images drawn from his photographic archive, each of them accompanied by poetic reflections on the very idea of dance.

What presents itself to our minds when we hear the word ‘dance’? Movement, music and rhythm, of course. The jitterbug and the slow waltz. But what if we go beyond the obvious?

Dance, the fourth volume in Sean Palfrey’s photography series, seeks to expand our conception of dance and to find and celebrate its presence in the world around us: in the graceful shape of a flower or leaf, in the elegant cursive of a spiral staircase, and in the joyfully uplifted arm of the newlywed.

Palfrey is a renowned paediatrician and child health advocate who travels the world with his work and for pleasure. His fascination with people, places and stories informs both his artistic and his professional practice. In Dance, Palfrey has curated a beguiling set of pictures and poetic texts that riff on movement and stillness, rhythm and flow, and the poetry of the curve. He asks us to consider the form of the ancient, gnarled tree, or the sinuous line of the winding river; the play of light and shadow on a frescoed wall, or the luminous colours of stained glass – all these are examples of dance. It is everywhere around us: pay attention and we will find it.