The ways in which artist Robert Rauschenberg and choreographer Paul Taylor were influenced by each other’s artistry will be explored in a talk by art historian Robert Mattison at the Yale University Art Gallery on Feb. 7.
The event, which will begin at 4 p.m., will also feature a performance of two of Taylor’s early works by members of Taylor 2, a professional ensemble of the Paul Taylor Dance Company that focuses on the choreographer’s early works.

Mattison, a scholar of Rauschenberg and the Marshall R. Metzgar Professor of Art History at Lafayette College in Pennsylvania, will discuss “Dancing Through History: Paul Taylor, Robert Rauschenberg and the Creation of ‘Tracer.’” “Tracer,” one of Taylor’s earliest works, featured sets and costumes by Rauschenberg, who was a scenic and costume designer for Taylor during the period 1954 to 1962. Mattison will explore how the collaborative experimental exercises of the two artists ultimately culminated in a clearly defined and unique style of movement vocabulary and framed the late 20th-century indigenous art form of American modern dance.
Among Mattison’s books and extended catalogs are “Robert Rauschenberg: Breaking Boundaries,” published by Yale University Press in 2004.
This semester, students are reconstructing another of Taylor’s earliest dances, “Party Mix,” in collaboration with Taylor 2 dancers as a project of the Yale Dance Theater, directed by Emily Coates ’06, ’11 GRD. Their project will culminate in a public dance performance on April 14. Mattison’s talk is offered by the Yale Dance Theater in collaboration with the Yale University Art Gallery as part of this year’s project.