"Pauline Street Breakdown" is a painting containing eight figures which are all meant to appear to be under the influence of a powerful, stimulating rhythm, two dancing and six playing instruments. The nucleus and starting point of the composition is the woman, executing a deft and lively step which expresses, more than any other device I can imagine, the frenzied intensity of the music. I drew her from a frame of the movie "The Cotton Club."
The trombonist stands up straight in contrast to the musicians flanking him. One is bent at the waist, leaning forward into the picture and the cornetist on the left is bent at the knees and leans back away from the center.
In order to make sure the figure was convincing and leaning backward as far as physically possible, I utilized a live model. Drawn nude first, the figure was then drawn dressed. That way I didn't have to imagine the forms, in an unusual pose, underlying the clothing.
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