With many of us still spending the bulk of our time at home during the continued risk of covid-19, finding things to do continues to get harder. For those of us who love dance, our limited opportunities to be around other dancers is a challenge. Thanks to a dance teacher and artist, we can all find joy in a coloring book featuring 21st century female dancers.
Modern Women: 21st-Century Dance, a 92-page coloring book, can help us enjoy art and dance from the comfort of our own homes. Created by Brooklyn-based dance photographer Julie Lemberger, this coloring book pays tribute to the powerful and creative women dancers of our generation.
Who Is Julie Lemberger?
While she’s a certified New York City public school dance instructor, she’s primarily a dance photographer. With the closure of studios, theaters, and dance companies in NYC due to covid-19, she found herself with extra time on her hands.
With experience creating geometric shapes and other accents in photoshop with her students, she noticed the opportunity to create a unique coloring book. Keeping in mind the many dancers she’s photographed in the 21st century, she knew who she wanted to feature.
Who Is Featured In This Coloring Book?
“I had a pretty good idea about who I’ve photographed over the years,” Lemberger says. “And I have been thinking for a long time that there needed to be a book or a photo exhibition about women in dance today.”
Looking through her photography archives, she sought permission from the dancers to use the images for line drawings in the book. This amazing book features:
- 60 soloist dancers
- Three duets
- A group from Philadanco!
- And a group from Urban Bush Women
The images are a combination of performances and rehearsal shots.
“The dancers had input in the way that they presented themselves, and also the world that we will see them in on the coloring pages,” Lemberger says. “The backgrounds express something about the dancer, the dance that they’re doing, or they create a new idea about the dance.”
Instead of featuring the dancers on blank pages, she used the dancers’ input and assistance from artist/photographer Roy Reid. The backgrounds feature geometric shapes, florals, and more.
Why A Modern Dance Coloring Book?
Ballet and other forms of dance are classics. However, their representation in modern art is sometimes limited. Appreciation for the arts comes through awareness, exhibition, and celebrating the beauty of the arts.
Lemberger’s main goal was to truly highlight beauty, strength and intelligence of women dancers and choreographers. By using performance and rehearsal images, it’s as if readers are truly interacting with the dancers and choreographers.
Where Can I Order This Coloring Book?
You can find more information on Lemberger’s website as well as her Etsy page. Her website features more information about how the coloring book came about, saying:
“Modern Women: 21st Century DANCE coloring book was created during the shuttered days of the corona virus pandemic – when we all had was time on our hands and the computer to keep us connected to the outside world. Using dance photographs, spanning the first two decades of the 21st century, presented are New York City’s living women DANCE creators, innovators and interpreters in many diverse genres and perspectives.”
And according to her Etsy page, “It’s a fun way for children, adults, students, and dancers to illustrate and explore women in dance today!”
Where Can I Learn More About Dance And Ballet?
As this book highlights the beauty found in the art of dance, you may be wondering where to start in beginning to dance. This is especially challenging if your interests are peaked during continued covid-19 closures.
Here at the International Ballet Academy, we designed our dance program to be fully accessible in the comfort of your own home. As you dive into this coloring book and find joy in dance, you can also dive into dance training!
We offer classes for toddlers, children, and adolescents, as well as adults. Our adult beginner ballet is an excellent option for those inspired but without previous dance training. Be sure to check out 10 Benefits Of Adult Beginner Ballet to learn more.
If this coloring book inspires you, don’t let the joy stop there. Explore the classes we offer and the International Ballet academy. Perhaps in the future, you or your child could be featured in a similar inspiring book. To learn more or register for classes you can visit our class offerings
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