Exploring Brighton’s Sculpture: 'Dancer Two'

Last week, we took a look at Kegham Tazian’s Elegant Lady, a bronze bust that marks the entrance to .

This week, we’re focusing on Dancer Two, a piece that stands on the grounds of , just around the corner from Elegant Lady.

Dancer Two was installed in 2009 as part of the second Brighton Biennial. Angular, dark and severe, its composition seems to contradict its title. But, as the sculpture’s artist explained, Dancer Two represents a dancer’s focus and precision of movement.

John Piet III, a Southfield-based artist whose work has garnered national and international attention, said he conceived the piece while he was studying art at Wayne State University. While completing his master’s degree at WSU, he constructed a series of lightweight cardboard “dancers” for Detroit’s Harbinger Dance Company, Michigan’s first modern dance company. To reinforce the strength of the dancers as well as his memory of the experience in graduate school, Piet later reconstructed the works using steel and black paint.

Piet, who moonlights as an amateur archaeologist, said his work often grows out of the tension created by opposing forces. City With a Halo, the other work Piet has on display in the Brighton Biennial, references the tension between heaven and earth.

Dancer Two will be on display in Brighton until this fall. Until then, it is for sale for $8,500.    

The Brighton Biennial Sculpture Exhibit, a project overseen by the city of Brighton Arts and Culture Commission, originated in 2006. It comprises of 35 sculptures, 12 permanent and 23 temporary. The permanent pieces were either bought by or donated to the city. The temporary pieces, whose duration in Brighton depends on individual contracts with the BACC, are for sale. Prices and details are available at downtownbrighton.com/1/brighton/art_walk.asp.