Body Formulas of Excitement in 18th Century Theater and Fine Art as “Formulas of Pathos”
Abstract
This paper aims to analyze the intermedial relationships between the visual arts and the theater, starting from the idea of “Pathosformeln” put forward by A. Warburg. Warburg, who meant art history as “psychohistory”, understood by “Pathosformeln” the stable corporal formulas for expressing strong emotional reactions. Such postures and gestures were ancient quotations and embodied the dark (Dionysian) side of antiquity. Renaissance artists turned to them in their search of ways to express strong excitement, and thus the “Pathosformeln” found new life in art. The most famous theatrical pose of fear can be considered with the portrait of actor D. Garrick as Richard III by W. Hogarth. In the pose and gesture of Garrick as Richard III one can see similarities with one of the “pathos formula” analyzed by A. Warburg, namely the “Death of Orpheus”. Similarly, the female theatrical gesture of fright, recorded by F. Lang and I. Engel as well as in theatrical iconography (L.-K. Carmontel, M. Kirzinger), also goes back to an ancient prototype — the nymph escaping pursuit. Updating the techniques of acting, D. Garrick and others — consciously or intuitively — turned to formulas of passionate gesture language, carrying within them an ancient pathos. I interpret the problem of intermediality in this context as the relationship between theater and the visual arts through bodily formulas common to both arts for expressing intense excitement.
Keywords
18th Century Theater,
“Pathosformeln”,
Fear,
Excitement,
Disgust,
Death of Orpheus,
Nymph,
David Garrick,
Ovid
About the Author
L. V. Nikiforova
Vaganova Ballet Academy; Herzen State Pedagogical University of Russia
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Nikiforova L. V. — Prof., Dr. Habil. (Cultural Studies); Department of Philosophy, History and Theory of art
2, Zodchego Rossi St., St. Petersburg, 191023
48, Moika Emb., St. Petersburg, 191186
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Review
For citations:
Nikiforova L.V. Body Formulas of Excitement in 18th Century Theater and Fine Art as “Formulas of Pathos”. Bulletin of Vaganova Ballet Academy. 2023;(3):117-134. (In Russ.)
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