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Country Club Dance

Date:

1969

Artist:

Philip Hanson
American, born 1943

About this artwork

Philip Hanson’s vibrant, intricately patterned paintings transform the everyday into images that are both mysterious and surreal. Hanson’s work aligned him with the Chicago Imagists, a group he showed with in the False Image exhibitions at the Hyde Park Art Center in 1968 and 1969. His work is often imbued with a subtle, romantic quality. Echoing the subject matter of the canvas itself, the painted flower petals on the artist’s handmade frame resemble dresses with their stamens extending like the arms of dancing women. The solitary woman at the center of the composition hides her face behind an accordion fan, surrounded by a half dozen anonymous dancing couples. Despite the crowded scene, the faceless couples appear lonely and removed from one another. The painting simultaneously conveys feelings of whimsy and foreboding—the subject matter may seem lighthearted, but the shadowed figures are quietly menacing.

Status

Currently Off View

Department

Contemporary Art

Artist

Philip Hanson

Title

Country Club Dance

Place

United States (Object made in)

Date  Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

1969

Medium

Oil on canvas, in artist's painted frame

Dimensions

73.7 × 73.7 cm (29 × 29 in.)

Credit Line

Gift of the Raymond K. Yoshida Living Trust and Kohler Foundation, Inc.

Reference Number

2012.484

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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