Horizontal, Nude + Otherwise Rad Urban Dance Photos from Jordan Matter [and How They Land Him On the Today Show!]

Dance is a universal form of expression. The spontaneous or choreographed movement of a human body tells a story, reflects social commentary, can be a spiritual exercise…or just damn fun. (impromptu dance parties are encouraged in my family…) We are born with this understanding of movement. Babies dance when they hear music. Dance even transcends humanity – even animals dance. Suffice to say I’ve had a long love-affair with capturing human movement in still photography, having captured dance since the 80’s when I was a…ahem…breakdancer…thru capturing some of the best B-boys in the world for RedBull and to a recent simple series I called Grace and Power where I had the opportunity to shoot some top ballet dancers in nice light.

All that said, I recently happened on the work of New York City photographer Jordan Matter, who has created some great dance work. More than light and subject, think context.Fuse the Sartorialist with Dancin In the Streets and you get just what you’d imagine: plainclothes (nude?) dancers outside the studio in urban settings, juxtaposed with everyday life. Jordan has received plenty of shoutouts for this work – even made an appearance on the Today Show. As such enjoy “Dancers Among Us”… #Respect to Jordan – link to his site above and below.

More of Jordan’s work here on his site.