Dance historians have long recognized the influence of the visual arts on the development of dance. However, scholarship that works in reverse, considering the impact of these dancers on the field of the visual arts, especially American art, is much rarer. Rather than view these images of dance solely as records of the dancers’ costumes or dance steps, this dissertation seeks to broaden the lens through which artistic depictions of dance are generally understood by examining and evaluating both the aesthetic qualities and the historical significance of the works.