Johans Borman Fine Art

Niemann, Hennie Jnr (b 1972)
The Dance - 2001
Oil on canvas
120 x 90 cm
Signed and dated bottom left
Sold - 2016

I regard ‘The Dance’ as one of Hennie’s seminal works. When I first laid eyes on it as he carried it into our gallery in Onrus in 2001, its energy and trance-like mood immediately grabbed my attention - like any masterpiece should. The confidence of the heavily laden red brushstrokes capture and communicate the energy of the ritual dancing while the contrast of the ethereal, sketchy outlines describing the faces of the girls in deep trance provide the perfect counterpoint. Hennie was 29 years old at the time and I was reminded of the comment by the curator of major 1992 Mattisse retrospective exhibition that, in his opinion, Matisse produced some of his very best work at the age of 28. My immediate thought was – how can Hennie possibly improve on a painting as powerful as this?
- Johans Borman