Whisper of brush echoes nameless desires. -Drue
Study of Dance
Dance and Sumi-e — Painting Movement
Painting Romance
Study of Dance
Drue has studied dance from all angles. As an artist she has carefully observed movement, gesture, and line. As a dancer she has taken lessons in tap, ballet, tango, swing, and ballroom. As a musician she has developed a profound understanding of the rhythmic structure of dance. As a student of movement, Drue has interacted with American dance legends such as Fayard Nicholas of the Nicholas brothers, Founding father of Lindy Hop Frankie Manning and the Queen of Swing Norma Miller. Visually, aurally and kinesthetically, Drue has internalized the essence of dance. Her brush caresses dancers in the eternal dialogue between man and woman, light and dark, day and night. She captures the bittersweet delicacy of a gesture suspended for a moment on the edge of an exquisite dream.
Dance and Sumi-e - Painting Movement
Drue is continually exploring the parallels between dance and the art of Sumi-e. "The brush must move with the same poise, control and flow of a great dancer—balancing strength and flexibility with the right timing. I want each brush stroke to be a gesture that comes alive in my hands."
Embodying the spirit of Zen, Drue's elegant and powerful art is ideal to capture the essence of dance. Her brush draws out the inherent motion in Sumi-e to create movement in a still image. She distills the beauty of a line or fluidity of a pose and delivers a lasting impression of a fleeting moment. Her paintings transcend the still frame of the moment to reveal the inner energy of the dancers.
Painting Romance
Drue courts subtlety in the conversation of movement between man and woman. "For tango, I feel my brush pulling away with the same reluctance inside of the smoldering dissonances of the bandoneón. For swing, I infuse my brush with the sultry syncopations and rhythmic push-pull of Jazz. For ballet it is a pas de deux of ink and paper." The encompassing embrace of Drue's ebony ink invites the viewer to experience a spectrum of emotion. The paintings radiate the tensions of fiery passion and the softest whisper-like refinements of romance.