John Singer Sargent painted this dynamic oil sketch of tango dancers in response to a trip to Spain in 1879, which allowed him to indulge his passion for Spanish art and culture. Inspired in part by 17th-century Spanish painting, Sargent's bravura brushwork suggests not only the dancers' sensuous movements but also their sultry environment. The picture, which Sargent likely painted from memory, belongs to a sizable group of oil and pencil studies he created for Spanish Dance (Hispanic Society of America, New York). The painter relished such projects as reprieves from more restrictive portrait commissions.
As Study for "Spanish Dance" suggests, Spanish art was widely admired and emulated throughout the late 19th century, especially for its anti-academic and expressionistic attributes.
