A Self-Taught Cancan Routine, 2004, 2021


A Self-Taught Cancan Routine 
Longest part: 166 x 30 cm/65 x 11 inches
Video stills on dibond
2004, 2021


The project is about my relation to French dance performer Jane Avril (1868-1943) who was a model and friend of Toulouse-Lautrec. I’ve felt connected to her personality and artistic expression ever since the very first time I saw images and photos of her.
It was like finding a soulmate, or a reflection of oneself in another era.

A Self-Taught Cancan Routine shows documentation of my first attempt at getting close to the movements and feelings of Jane Avril, by performing a self-taught cancan routine in front of an audience at my high school.

Each video still segment is named after the different steps of the dance, such as “Battement” (“Beating”) and “Coup de cul” (“Ass kick.”)


A Self-Taught Cancan Routine – Entrée
166 x 30 cm/65 x 11 inches


A Self-Taught Cancan Routine – Battement
166 x 30 cm/65 x 11 inches


A Self-Taught Cancan Routine – Agrandir
70 x 30 cm/27 x 11 inches


A Self-Taught Cancan Routine – Roue de Charette
134 x 30 cm/53 x 11 inches


A Self-Taught Cancan Routine – Coup de Cul
101 x 30 cm/40 x 11 inches

A Self-Taught Cancan Routine – Après Grande Écart
101 x 30 cm/40 x 11 inches