André Derain — The Dancer Sonia

Edgar Degas is the painter most associated with ballet and dance as subject matter, but Derain shared that fascination with dancers. The woman here is Sonia Gaskell, a dancer born in Lithuania who trained in Paris and later moved to the Netherlands, where she led the founding of the country's first national ballet company. Her pose looks relaxed at first glance, but the bent right wrist and the legs spread in a full 180-degree split are far from easy to replicate. Holding this position for even a moment takes some doing—let alone standing in it for the length of time a portrait sitting requires.