There are two versions of <em>The Dance</em>, the first, painted in March of 1909, is the study for the second one, completed in 1910. The large work, painted along the lines of William Blake’s painting <em>Oberon, Titania and Puck with Fairies Dancing</em>, was painted along with its companion piece, Music, which depicts nudes playing music in a similar setting. The pieces were specially created for Russian businessman and art collector Sergei Shchukin, who was a long-time associate of Matisse’s. This painting is often recognized as a key point in the development of Matisse’s artwork, as well as in the development of modern painting. It is also often associated with “Dance of the Young Girls,” in <em>The Rite of Spring</em> by Igor Stravinsky.