Misty does it again. Ahead of a new exhibition at New York’s Museum of Modern Art, dancer Misty Copeland channels the most iconic paintings and sculpture from French impressionist artist Edgar Degas and opens up about what it feels like to make history.

“I was drawn to ballet and performing for a reason that I think a lot of people can’t really understand or relate to,” Misty says, “People think it’s like, ‘You’re out there,’ or ‘You’re exposed.’ But I felt safe when I was on the stage, like no one could get to me. It was the first time in my life that I felt protected […].”

Photo: Ken Browar & Deborah Ory
Photo: Ken Browar & Deborah Ory

“I think what I’m doing is showing people how incredible the arts can be for a child and how it’s changed my life,” Misty continues, “I try not to get caught up in the other stuff, but I understand the importance of me doing it.”

Photo: Ken Browar & Deborah Ory

Thelma Golden, director and chief curator of the Studio Museum in Harlem says, “I see a great affinity between Degas’s dancers and Misty. She has knocked aside a long-standing music-box stereotype of the ballerina and replaced it with a thoroughly modern, multicultural image of presence and power.”

Photo: Ken Browar & Deborah Ory

Misty proves time and time again that she is here and here to slay…

Photo: youtube
Photo: youtube

See the behind the scenes photoshoot from Harper’s Bazaar

READ NEXT: Misty Copeland Inspires in ‘A Ballerina’s Tale’ [Review]