Ballerina Stretches Among Tiny Shoebox Buildings

Diffused dawn light falls through mist in a San Fernando de Apure practice room, softening the worn wooden barre where a ballerina stretches. She wears a simple leotard, her muscles taut as she reaches upward against the cool morning air. Along the floorboards and window sills, miniature buildings the size of shoeboxes line the frame, their tiny windows reflecting the gray sky. The dancer rests her hands on the wood, her shadow falling across the floor next to the impossible structures. Dust motes float in the beams of light, illuminating the texture of the worn wood and the smooth fabric of her clothing. At the bottom edge, a tiny brick chimney on a shoebox house aligns with a crack in the floorboards.