As a writer and dancer, I’m drawn to beauty. The need is nearly as strong as the one for water, food, and breath. Beauty supports an ongoing flow of vitality and inspires future creations. It lights the spark in my eye.
Which is why I had to dance tango with my partner Michael Noyes in the glass elevator at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. The elevator graces the lobby with its silent portage and transparent walls reflecting ceiling lights and the sun from nearby oversized windows. Its liminal space reveals and conceals its occupants as it dutifully rises and descends, its door opening and closing without complaint in a dance of shifting heights and perspectives.
Arthur Stephens agreed to document our dance. I didn’t think to get permission to enter the elevator. The opening door was invitation enough. Surprised patrons who got on with us smiled before asking which floor button to press.
Up and down we went repeatedly, the small glass square limiting yet embellishing our tango.
Apparently, a displeased patron alerted a guard to our celebration of dance. His legs are visible near the end of the video as he asks that we exit.
