The Spectrum

Issue date: 2/15/07 Section: A & E

The talented artist of the masterpiece Elsie from Chelsea, Ann Chernow, is known for creating works based on individual impressions inspired by movies from the 1930s and 1940s. Growing up in Flushing, New York, Chernow loved watching movies and she has often cited them as inspiration:

My work is based on specific scenes and impressions related to movies from the 1930s and 1940s. I use film characters and period settings as a point of departure and then reinterpret. Contemporary faces are added but without altering the spirit of a cinematic moment. In blending past and present images I try to create a sense of dejà vu or nostalgia without the sentimentality often associated with specific film stars. I am interested in individual personalities and in using crowded scenes of choreographed women.



Chernow's treatment of her subjects allows the viewer to finish their stories. Her characters are usually self-reliant, working women in the process of seeking and forming identities. They are believable, yet elusive.

When we first sat in the hall in front of this painting, we all observed certain general aspects of Elsie from Chelsea. It was very clear that this painting was of three young dancing girls. The color scheme consists of mostly brown, then pink and blue. There are no hard lines in the painting, instead the colors are mostly blended which lends a feeling of soft grace.

Although we at first thought the girls were treated similarly, but we realized on closer inspection that the middle girl actually sticks out an immense amount. For example, her features are much more detailed than those of the other two. Her face seems very life-like compared to her fellow dancers because her skin tone is pink and her cheeks are rosy. Similarly, her eyes have a very alive sparkle. She is surrounded by pink with a touch of blue, while the outer girls are framed almost entirely with brown. Her clothes are more detailed. Next to her, the other two look like shadows, wisps of a darker past, while our middle girl seems to be looking forward to a bright future. This is also supported by the direction of the dancers' gazes. While the outer two girls look down and off to the side, the middle one is looking straight up and out, almost into the heart of the viewer and into the future.

When we first discussed this painting, we toyed with the idea that the artist might possibly have been portraying herself. We found out, however, that the central figure is actually loosely based on Chernow's Aunt Rosie, who was a "dime-a-dance girl" and then a chorine, or chorus line dancer, in New York.

"Elsie from Chelsea" is the title of an old song. Chernow titles almost all of her work after period songs because her father was a bandleader and played all the old kinds of music, and she still loves the music and all the crazy titles. The titles are also well suited to her work, since almost all the images of her work are based on movie images from that same era.

We see Elsie from Chelsea as a very inspirational painting in that it encourages us to strive for our goals and always look ahead and never give up and look down on ourselves. It is an image that can give one confidence and determination to succeed in life and to make every effort to be successful.

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