Ballerinas are often associated with beauty, grace, and elegant human forms. In his video En Puntas (‘On Points’), however, artist Javier Perez has managed to preserve all of these elements while also portraying the dark intensity, dedication and even violence that this graceful art form can represent.

En Puntas features ballerina Amelie Segarra dancing the en pointe ballet technique (in which the performer typically dances on the points of their toes) on the tips of huge, menacing kitchen knives in an empty, darkened theater. She struggles to maintain the grace that we typically expect of ballerinas as the knives scrape and stab ever more violently at the grand piano she’s standing on. Her composure, however, is periodically broken as she lets out a scream of frustration at the intense difficulty of her performance.

Coupled with the dark and empty theater she is performing in, the video makes for anything but light viewing. The intensity, frustration and violence of her performance (literally) on the razor’s edge are a testament to the intense dedication and sometimes physical suffering required of ballet performers. It’s up for debate as to how much of the performance was ACTUALLY completed en pointe en knives en a piano (given the limited footage we see in the video showing a full shot of the ballerina dancing), but it is nonetheless a unique and interesting idea!

And don’t forget, if you’re looking for a piece of original art to hang on your walls, check out artFido HERE!