All the World's a Stage: Bjørn Okholm Skaarup & Mark S. Kornbluth

All the World’s a Stage pairs Mark S. Kornbluth’s portraits of Broadway theatres with Bjørn Okholm Skaarup’s fanciful circus performers, such as his beloved starlet Hippo Ballerina. Skaarup’s animal characters are inspired by the Baroque-era circus and include a Crocodile Cymbalist, Rhino Banjo Player, Koala Clown, Tiger Fakir, and more. The artist’s latest incarnations of his famous dancing hippo—a nod to both Disney’s Fantasia and Degas’s Little Dancer—show the massive mammal adding a hula hoop to her act. Other performers in the sculptor’s recent work include the tour-de-force Town Musicians of Bremen, a masterful bronze depicting the ragtag troupe of the eponymous Grimm fairy tale, with a dog, cat, rooster, and their instruments astride a spirited donkey.

Mark S. Kornbluth brings his academic training as an actor and professional experience in stage management to his luminous portraits of Broadway theaters, a series the photographer began in 2020. The marquees clamor for attention while the buildings themselves take center stage against the backdrop of midnight in Manhattan. Kornbluth’s eye for color and form gives these highly-detailed images a painterly quality and an essence that transcends subject. New releases in the series include 50^th and 6^th (Radio City) and New Amsterdam.

All the World's a Stage is part of our 2025 Summer Duos series, online-only exhibitions that pair gallery artists for a fresh perspective on each maker’s work. Email art@cavaliergalleries.com to inquire about availability, pricing, and gallery location of individual artworks.