MADS MIL@NO PHOTO AWARD CATA DEF

David Shepherd
“It is not sufficient to see and to know the beauty of a work. We must feel and be affected by it.”
(Voltaire)
David Shepherd is an English photographer. Since his childhood he has dedicated himself to this form of art,
only to discover his interest in dance photography. In his images the lightness of classical dance emerges, told
through the graceful movements of the dancers, who gently accompany the dresses in motion. But what the
spectator sees of the dance is not what the dancer feels on stage. The effort that belongs to him, even if masterfully
hidden, is not small, the moment of performance requires concentration to balance each movement with the
right expression. In this “Strength and Grace” photograph, David focuses on a detail, the tip of a ballerina’s shoe
which, in ballet, is the place where all body weight is concentrated and where balance and labour meet grace. He
allows us to step onto the stage and see beyond the performance. Our attention is suddenly drawn to a myriad of
details. The traces of dust left by the plaster used to prevent slipping, the curvature of the instep developed with
years of exercise, the lace that tightens the ankle, the creased shoe that tells the story of the dancer, the effort
in the search for perfection. A single instant, the one in which the dancer puts her foot on the ground to lift her
whole being, creating a new shape in the air and giving life to every sensation, in order to convey harmony and
grace to the eyes of the beholder.
Art Curator Francesca Brunello