Grace Ravlin (American, 1873-1956) Moqui Ceremonial Dance oil on canvas 24 x 30 inches In Moqui Ceremonial Dance, Grace Ravlin focuses more on the individual dancers than on the dance itself, as she often does. We aren't seeing the Katsinas, or a long view of a sinuous dance, or preparations for the dance from a vantage point outside a kiva. Here, we are all but in the dance, feeling the vibrations of their footfalls, hearing the song, the rustle of the costumes and leaves, and observing the symmetry of the dancer's bodies as the move in synchronous harmony across the plaza. To reinforce our proximity, Ravlin shows us a pair of spectators on a roof beside a ladder. They may have a better view, but we're feeling at least some of what the dancers feel. -James D. Balestrieri Property from the Collection of Leonard Stark, Chicago, Illinois