Goblin Dance
by Bertha Lum
- Date:
- 1912
- Medium:
- Color woodcut
- Dimensions:
- 23.2 × 37.5 cm
- Source:
- Minneapolis Institute of Art
by Bertha Lum
$1,000–$8,000. Common subjects: $1,000–$2,500. Key value factors: Bertha Lum's status as a pioneering Western woodblock printmaker gives her work historical value. Her Art Nouveau-influenced prints are particularly sought after.
This 1912 color woodcut brings to life a scene of goblin revelry, drawing on Japanese tales of tengu, oni, and other supernatural beings who gather to dance and make mischief. Lum's interest in the folklore of the countries she visited — Japan, China, Korea — gave her access to a visual world largely untapped by Western printmakers. The goblin dance allowed her to push beyond the restrained elegance of her landscape work into something wilder and more inventive, with exaggerated forms and energetic movement. Musical accompaniment is implied by the dancers' rhythms, connecting the scene to festival traditions where costumed performers enacted stories of supernatural encounter. Lum's carving is looser here than in her architectural subjects, matching the anarchic energy of the subject.
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Goblin Dance was created by Bertha Lum in 1912.
Goblin Dance depicts music and mythology.
Goblin Dance measures 23.2 × 37.5 cm.
