Arts

18 pages, 635 KiB

Open AccessArticle

“Choreographing Empathy” in Walking Miracles, an Original Dance/Theater Work Created from Stories Told by Six Adult Survivors of Child Sexual Abuse

by Barbara Dickinson

Arts 2024, 13(6), 182; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts13060182 - 11 Dec 2024

Abstract

Walking Miracles, a dance/theater project, was created from the stories of six adult survivors of child sexual abuse and completed due to the conscientious work of many collaborators. A psychotherapy group of fourteen sessions was audiotaped and attended by the six survivors, [...] Read more.

Walking Miracles, a dance/theater project, was created from the stories of six adult survivors of child sexual abuse and completed due to the conscientious work of many collaborators. A psychotherapy group of fourteen sessions was audiotaped and attended by the six survivors, three dancer/choreographers, and one psychotherapist. Our goals were to provide positive psychotherapeutic experiences for the survivors and the foundation for a dance/theater piece that would then be presented to the public at the conclusion of the group sessions. Our hope was that audiences would gain a deeper empathetic understanding of child sexual abuse and would become stronger allies for the survivors and stronger advocates for child abuse prevention. Empathetic abilities were critical for this project—in the psychotherapy process, in the care taken to protect the trust and confidentiality of the survivors, and in the creation of the script, choreography, music, and poetry. I will examine the nature of empathy and the processes for creating specific movements from such dark experiences. How does one approach a work about issues so intensely personal? What care do we need to provide for the participants during the progression of the work? What are the ethical aspects of such projects that use the personal narratives of hidden communities? Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Choreographing Society)

12 pages, 1121 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Destroying Vision, Destroying Hearing: Sergei Kuriokhin and Arkady Dragomoshchenko

by Evgeny Pavlov

Arts 2024, 13(6), 181; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts13060181 - 10 Dec 2024

Abstract

The article explores the unique friendship and creative synergy between two towering figures of late Soviet underground culture, the avant-garde jazz musician Sergei Kuriokhin and the poet Arkady Dragomoshchenko. Both outsiders in Leningrad, they shaped its literary and musical landscapes without aligning with [...] Read more.

The article explores the unique friendship and creative synergy between two towering figures of late Soviet underground culture, the avant-garde jazz musician Sergei Kuriokhin and the poet Arkady Dragomoshchenko. Both outsiders in Leningrad, they shaped its literary and musical landscapes without aligning with any movements. Dragomoshchenko, a seminal poet, defied categorization, while Kuriokhin, a polymath, challenged conventions across music, performance, and politics. Their collaboration epitomized innovation, blending Dragomoshchenko’s cerebral poetry with Kuriokhin’s avant-garde music. Despite linguistic barriers, their connection transcended verbal communication, rooted in shared modes of nonlinear thinking and creative experimentation. Kuriokhin’s revolutionary Pop Mekhanika, a chaotic fusion of genres and sensory experiences, mirrored Dragomoshchenko’s relentless poetic evolution. Their friendship catalyzed pivotal encounters, such as with the American poet Lyn Hejinian, expanding their artistic horizons. Dragomoshchenko’s poetic vision, centred on perception’s fleeting nature and the boundaries of possibility, echoed Kuriokhin’s multisensory assaults on audience expectations. Through their unconventional artistry, Kuriokhin and Dragomoshchenko navigated the shifting cultural landscape of late Soviet society, embodying a spirit of defiance and exploration. Their enduring influence transcends their untimely deaths, leaving an indelible mark on Russian avant-garde culture. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Music vis-à-vis Other Arts in Eastern and Central Europe: Performance, Literature, Theatre, Art/Architecture and Visuality)

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18 pages, 5749 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Multivariantism of Auditory Perceptions as a Significant Element of the Auditory Scene Analysis Concept

by Adam Rosiński

Arts 2024, 13(6), 180; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts13060180 - 9 Dec 2024

Abstract

The concept of auditory scene analysis, popularized in scientific experiments by A. S. Bregman, the primary architect of the perceptual streaming theory, and his research team, along with more recent analyses by subsequent researchers, highlights a specific scientific gap that has not been [...] Read more.

The concept of auditory scene analysis, popularized in scientific experiments by A. S. Bregman, the primary architect of the perceptual streaming theory, and his research team, along with more recent analyses by subsequent researchers, highlights a specific scientific gap that has not been thoroughly explored in previous studies. This article seeks to expand on this concept by introducing the author’s observation of the multivariant nature of auditory perception. This notion suggests that listeners focusing on different components of an auditory image (such as a musical piece) may perceive the same sounds but interpret them as distinct sound structures. Notably, even the same listener may perceive various structures (different mental figures) when re-listening to the same piece, depending on which musical elements they focus on. The thesis of multivariantism was examined and confirmed through the analysis of selected classical music pieces, providing concrete evidence of different interpretations of the same sound stimuli. To enhance clarity and understanding, the introduction to multivariantism was supplemented with graphic examples from the visual arts, which were then related to musical art through score excerpts from the works of composers such as C. Saint-Saëns, F. Liszt, and F. Mendelssohn Bartholdy. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Applied Musicology and Ethnomusicology)

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12 pages, 3253 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Kris Martin: Altar/Altering Perspectives

by Karen Shelby

Arts 2024, 13(6), 179; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts13060179 - 5 Dec 2024

Abstract

Kris Martin: Altar/Altering Perspectives Flemish artist Kris Martin’s work exists in relationship to the city of Ghent and his reflection on that city’s medieval past. His pieces that implicitly engage with the Ghent Altarpiece by Hubert and Jan van Eyck question the position [...] Read more.

Kris Martin: Altar/Altering Perspectives Flemish artist Kris Martin’s work exists in relationship to the city of Ghent and his reflection on that city’s medieval past. His pieces that implicitly engage with the Ghent Altarpiece by Hubert and Jan van Eyck question the position of human beings in both physical and subjective relationships to works of art. They invite viewers, particularly residents of Ghent, to participate in a new narrative of Ghent, one that is framed, sometimes literally, by the layers of Romanesque and Gothic art and architecture and the symbolism and visual language of Flemish Christianity. They reveal his baroque interest in bringing together tradition and a contemporary conceptual ideology and fall somewhere between the theatricality of the carnival and the artificiality of the spectacle. While a few pieces pointedly reference a Flemish Catholic ideology, the medieval manipulation of the public and the direct iconography are missing. Through his manipulation of scale and placement in non-traditional locations, the pieces are open to new readings beyond the emotive and didactic. But, much in the tradition of the Northern Renaissance, they engage the viewer intellectually and ask for introspection. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Flemish Art: Past and Present)

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21 pages, 18533 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A Black Cartographer of the Long Eighteenth Century: Anastácio de Sant’Anna’s Guia de Caminhantes

by Matthew Francis Rarey

Arts 2024, 13(6), 178; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts13060178 - 5 Dec 2024

Abstract

From 1816 to 1817, Anastácio de Sant’Anna, a pardo (mixed-race) artist and cartographer active in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil, produced the Guia de Caminhantes, a manuscript atlas of Brazil and the Americas. Sant’Anna’s Guia is one of the few extant cartographic works produced [...] Read more.

From 1816 to 1817, Anastácio de Sant’Anna, a pardo (mixed-race) artist and cartographer active in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil, produced the Guia de Caminhantes, a manuscript atlas of Brazil and the Americas. Sant’Anna’s Guia is one of the few extant cartographic works produced by a Black artist during the slavery era. Discussing the Guia in English for the first time, this essay positions Sant’Anna’s work inside of the emergent subfield of Black Geographies. It argues that Sant’Anna used the Guia to advocate for the place of Black and Indigenous histories in Brazil’s nascent, post-colonial national identity, while also interrogating the history of cartography and landscape painting in colonial Brazil. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Black Artists in the Atlantic World)

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24 pages, 4753 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Laban Effort in Empty-Handed Interactions of Hindustani Dhrupad Vocal Improvisation

by Stella Paschalidou

Arts 2024, 13(6), 177; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts13060177 - 29 Nov 2024

Abstract

Effort, commonly understood as the power of an action toward an intended goal, is acknowledged as an important aspect of music expressivity. Previous studies in Hindustani Dhrupad vocal improvisation, particularly those focusing on manual interactions with imaginary objects, have revealed the intricate connection [...] Read more.

Effort, commonly understood as the power of an action toward an intended goal, is acknowledged as an important aspect of music expressivity. Previous studies in Hindustani Dhrupad vocal improvisation, particularly those focusing on manual interactions with imaginary objects, have revealed the intricate connection between effort and various movement and melodic variables. The study employed manual annotations by participants who visually inspected and assessed the amount of effort that such interactions were perceived to require. However, since effort is inherently perceptual and subjective and the way that an observer makes assessments on effort levels remains a non-transparent process, the paper seeks to examine the applicability of the Laban Movement Analysis (LMA) system in this task. For this, it relies on a multi-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) to infer manually annotated (numerical) effort levels from Laban’s (categorical) Effort Factors, namely Weight, Flow, Time, and Space, for two Dhrupad performances. The results suggest that apart from the Space factor, which was excluded for reasons delineated, a good part of effort’s variance can be explained through the remaining three statistically significant Effort Factors, leading to the rejection of the null hypothesis that they are unrelated. By ascertaining this relationship, effort-related melodic aspects in Dhrupad improvisation can be predicted using the three Laban Effort Factors. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Applied Musicology and Ethnomusicology)

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54 pages, 27840 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Citrus: From Symbolism to Sensuality—Exploring Luxury and Extravagance in Western Muslim Bustān and European Renaissance Gardens

by Diego Rivera, Julio Navarro, Inmaculada Camarero, Javier Valera, Diego-José Rivera-Obón and Concepción Obón

Arts 2024, 13(6), 176; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts13060176 - 21 Nov 2024

Abstract

This study delves into the multifaceted realm of citrus fruits, exploring their significance and socioeconomic implications from their early introduction to Western Muslim and Renaissance gardens, tracing their journey throughout history. Employing a multidisciplinary approach, drawing from biological, archaeobotanical, iconographic, and textual sources, [...] Read more.

This study delves into the multifaceted realm of citrus fruits, exploring their significance and socioeconomic implications from their early introduction to Western Muslim and Renaissance gardens, tracing their journey throughout history. Employing a multidisciplinary approach, drawing from biological, archaeobotanical, iconographic, and textual sources, our study offers a comprehensive exploration of citrus symbolism and cultural significance, integrating historical, artistic, horticultural, and socioeconomic viewpoints. The genus Citrus (Rutaceae) comprises around thirty species and its natural habitat spans from the southern slopes of the Himalayas to China, Southeast Asia, nearby islands, and Queensland. Originating from only four of these species, humans have cultivated hundreds of hybrids and thousands of varieties, harnessing their culinary, medicinal, and ornamental potential worldwide. We delve into the symbolic value of citrus fruits, which have served as indicators of economic status and power. From their early presence in Mediterranean religious rituals to their depiction in opulent Roman art and mythical narratives like the Garden of the Hesperides, citrus fruits have epitomized luxury and desire. Christian lore intertwines them with the forbidden fruit of Eden, while Islamic and Sicilian gardens and Renaissance villas signify their prestige. We analyze diverse perspectives, from moralists to hedonists, and examine their role in shaping global agriculture, exemplified by rare varieties like aurantii foetiferi. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Al-Bustān: Recreational Estates in the Islamic West and Sicily—Architectures and Spaces of Prestige as Symbols of Power)

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30 pages, 7352 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A Study on Sensory Analysis of Memory Places

by Nurcihan Akdağ and Şefika Gülin Beyhan

Arts 2024, 13(6), 175; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts13060175 - 21 Nov 2024

Abstract

Sensory analyses carried out for the perception and experience of the city emphasize the importance of trying to understand the city with different senses, beyond seeing it with the naked eye. While we aim to obtain information about how these changes in the [...] Read more.

Sensory analyses carried out for the perception and experience of the city emphasize the importance of trying to understand the city with different senses, beyond seeing it with the naked eye. While we aim to obtain information about how these changes in the field are remembered through verbal interviews, the use of sensory perception analyses as a tool makes the study different and original from other studies conducted on a city scale. Cities are not only physical spaces but also carriers of collective memory. The study, which aims to map the sensory perceptions of individuals who have experienced the city for a long time, seeks to present projections for the present and the future by collecting information about the urban space, social life, and memory areas of the city of Isparta that have continued for centuries. Qualitative and quantitative research methods were used in the study. Verbal interviews and sensory analyses form the basis of the study. Concepts, such as common areas shared by groups, group life stories, family relations, national consciousness, and belonging, came to the fore in the emergence of collective memory. In this context, potentially valuable memory spaces were analyzed to determine the perceptual meaning continuities formed in the minds of the urban dwellers. Full article

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17 pages, 32864 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Emotions and the Manifestation of Ancient Egyptian Royal Power: A Consideration of the Twin Stelae at Abu Simbel

by Tara Prakash

Arts 2024, 13(6), 174; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts13060174 - 20 Nov 2024

Abstract

Drawing on methods and theories from the history of emotions, this paper examines the Twin Stelae that flank the entrance into Ramses II’s Great Temple at Abu Simbel in order to investigate the feelings associated with ancient Egyptian kingship from an ideological perspective. [...] Read more.

Drawing on methods and theories from the history of emotions, this paper examines the Twin Stelae that flank the entrance into Ramses II’s Great Temple at Abu Simbel in order to investigate the feelings associated with ancient Egyptian kingship from an ideological perspective. As the ruler, what was the king himself supposed to feel, and what feelings was he meant to elicit in his subjects? How did the feelings of the king differ from those of his subjects, and how did all these feelings reinforce and reify the institution of kingship and royal power? In order to propose some answers to these complex questions, I offer a close reading of key words and passages on the Stelae, considering the choice of hieroglyphic signs that the artists used to write them, the ways in which the artists depicted these signs, and the context of the words and passages within the inscriptions. I then use the Stelae’s text to consider how ancient viewers were meant to see and experience the monumental façade of the Great Temple. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ancient Egyptian Art Studies: Art in Motion, a Social Tool of Power and Resistance)

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2 pages, 137 KiB

Open AccessCorrection

Correction: Abrahams (2024). The Unseen Truth of God in Early Modern Masterpieces. Arts 13: 158

by Simon Abrahams

Arts 2024, 13(6), 173; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts13060173 - 19 Nov 2024

Abstract

In the original publication (Abrahams 2024), reference (Holt 1957, p [...] Full article

17 pages, 8915 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Hubert Goltzius’s Lebendige Bilder Gar Nach Aller Keysern, Emperor Maximilian II, and Renaissance Cycles of Fresco Portraits of Emperors in Palaces in Silesia

by Andrzej Kozieł

Arts 2024, 13(6), 172; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts13060172 - 18 Nov 2024

Abstract

At the beginning of the 21st century, there were sensational discoveries in two palaces located in Ciechanowice and Struga in Silesia (Poland). During their renovations, Renaissance fresco cycles of portraits of emperors from the Roman, medieval, and early modern times appeared under the [...] Read more.

At the beginning of the 21st century, there were sensational discoveries in two palaces located in Ciechanowice and Struga in Silesia (Poland). During their renovations, Renaissance fresco cycles of portraits of emperors from the Roman, medieval, and early modern times appeared under the layer of plaster in the representative dining rooms (27 in the palace in Struga and about 50 in the palace in Ciechanowice). They were painted in the 1580s (in Ciechanowice, the date is 1588) by the same unknown artist. This article is the first to attempt to establish the most important facts related to the creation of both fresco cycles. The frescoes were founded by representatives of influential Silesian Protestant nobility: Heinrich von Reichenbach (Ciechanowice) and Abraham von Czettritz und Neuhaus (Struga). Both nobles attended the funeral of Emperor Maximilian II, which took place in Prague in 1577. This is where they purchased a work by the Dutch printmaker, painter, and numismatist, Hubert Goltzius, Lebendige Bilder Gar Nach Aller Keysern […] (published in Antwerp in 1557), whose specially prepared copy had been solemnly presented to Emperor Maximilian II in 1562. The book contains 133 monochrome woodcut illustrations with portraits of emperors in circular frames by the Dutch artist Joss van Gietleughen, which—together with accompanying inscriptions—were used as models for fresco paintings in both Silesian palaces. The foundation of the cycles of portraits of the emperors of the Roman Empire and the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation in the representative halls of the palaces in Ciechanowice and Struda, which ended with a joint representation of Emperor Maximilian II and the King of Spain, Philip II Habsburg, was a way to show the gratitude of both prominent and wealthy Protestant nobles towards Emperor Maximilian II. During his reign, imperial power was the source and guarantee of religious freedoms for Protestants in Silesia. It is significant that both cycles left out the person of emperor regnant, Rudolf II, who soon after assuming the imperial throne abandoned his father’s tolerant policy towards Protestants. Although the author of both series of frescoes was probably a local painter, they are a unique artistic realization not only in Silesia but also in the whole of Central Europe, and they can only be compared to the popular Renaissance portrait galleries of “famous men” (uomini famosi). Full article

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17 pages, 2888 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Marginalized Textile Producers in New Kingdom Egypt

by Jordan Galczynski

Arts 2024, 13(6), 171; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts13060171 - 18 Nov 2024

Abstract

Textiles were ubiquitous in the elite Egyptian cultural sphere—from clothing, furniture coverings, and wall decorations to grave goods and temple offerings. The Egyptian world was draped in cloth, yet the producers were often marginalized members of society—immigrants, war captives, and women, who produced [...] Read more.

Textiles were ubiquitous in the elite Egyptian cultural sphere—from clothing, furniture coverings, and wall decorations to grave goods and temple offerings. The Egyptian world was draped in cloth, yet the producers were often marginalized members of society—immigrants, war captives, and women, who produced for a select few to whom they did not often belong. This paper aims to use textiles as a medium to investigate how the New Kingdom textile industry maintained social inequalities and power differentials. This paper highlights the efforts of marginalized labor in the production of textiles in New Kingdom Egypt, utilizing an intersectional approach to understand the interactions of the producers, varying levels of management, and elite consumers. Textiles were a high-value resource and one of the only goods that increased in value with labor, unlike other crafted goods, like metals, for example. I posit that this was inherently linked to the marginalization of the labor involved. The fabrics woven were a display of the Egyptian hegemony and reaffirmed the social order between the elites and the rest of society. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ancient Egyptian Art Studies: Art in Motion, a Social Tool of Power and Resistance)

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24 pages, 17070 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The “Invisible” Side of Yellow Coffins—The Set of the Chantress of Amun Tanethereret in the Musée du Louvre and Some Considerations on the Production of Yellow Coffins in the First Half of the 21st Dynasty

by Stefania Mainieri

Arts 2024, 13(6), 170; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts13060170 - 11 Nov 2024

Abstract

Through the coffin set of Tanethereret—dated to the first half of the 21st Dynasty—this article aims to underline the importance of analysing the masks and human features of ancient Egyptian yellow coffins and their value in disclosing new and important information about the [...] Read more.

Through the coffin set of Tanethereret—dated to the first half of the 21st Dynasty—this article aims to underline the importance of analysing the masks and human features of ancient Egyptian yellow coffins and their value in disclosing new and important information about the Third Intermediate Period society. By moving between different visualisations, overlapping layers, measuring, and comparing, the sculpted human forms can be, for example, further indices of the quality of the production/”workshop”/artist and of the socio-economic power of the client. The possibility of making a three-piece set—coherent not only in decoration but also in form—suggests the existence of workshops capable of producing high-quality coffins and, consequently, that some people could still economically afford such coffin sets. Gaining access to such “workshops” and this type of production may indeed represent a further attempt to “manufacture social power” for the middle or high elites. Moreover, this specific case study also shows the dynamism of ancient Egyptian artistic production in a period of crisis, with artists able not only to re-adapt and re-commodify an ancient object but also to create possible new compositions with a balanced mix of styles between tradition and innovation. The study of this “invisible” part of the yellow coffins thus represents a new way of reconstructing the history of the people “hidden behind” the yellow coffins and the socio-economic sphere of ancient Egyptian society in the Third Intermediate Period, manifested through the resulting art and material culture. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ancient Egyptian Art Studies: Art in Motion, a Social Tool of Power and Resistance)

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17 pages, 1519 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Regional Claims Through Exhibitions—The Transnational Circulation of Włocławek “Fajans” in East Central Europe

by Karolina Majewska-Güde

Arts 2024, 13(6), 169; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts13060169 - 8 Nov 2024

Abstract

The article examines the exhibition history of hand-painted ceramic objects from the “Fajans” factory in Włocławek and the politics of regional contextualization during the period of détente in the 1970s and 1980s. It extends both existing scholarship on transnational art history in socialist [...] Read more.

The article examines the exhibition history of hand-painted ceramic objects from the “Fajans” factory in Włocławek and the politics of regional contextualization during the period of détente in the 1970s and 1980s. It extends both existing scholarship on transnational art history in socialist Europe and the notion of cultural diplomacy, approached here in the context of regional politics and economic frameworks. The paper highlights the peripheral networks and movements that developed in relation to the socialist cultural politics of working-class artistic engagement and artistic practice as labor. Questions of cooperation between Poland and other socialist states are of particular interest, as are the implications of détente for East Central Europe. The reconstruction of the transnational circulation of “Fajans” objects is based on a comparative analysis of international “Fajans” exhibitions, using documentation from the archives of the Faience Department of the Museum of the Kujawy and Dobrzyń Land, as well as from the archives of the city of Novi Sad. Based on the researched material and the conceptual framework of transnational art history, the article proposes a concept of regional cultural diplomacy. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Cultural Diplomacy and Informal Artistic Relations in East Central Europe in the 20th Century: A Global Perspective)

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41 pages, 40274 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Storied Rocks: Portals to Other Dimensions

by Richard Stoffle, Kathleen Van Vlack, Alannah Bell and Bianca Eguino Uribe

Arts 2024, 13(6), 168; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts13060168 - 7 Nov 2024

Abstract

Storied Rocks (Tumpituxwinap) is a term of reference used by the Numic speaking tribal elders whom we have worked with for over 60 years on an estimated 200 ethnographic studies. Key to this analysis are the protocols for approaching, interacting, and using [...] Read more.

Storied Rocks (Tumpituxwinap) is a term of reference used by the Numic speaking tribal elders whom we have worked with for over 60 years on an estimated 200 ethnographic studies. Key to this analysis are the protocols for approaching, interacting, and using the places where Storied Rocks have been located. Concomitant with these traditional protocols are ones established to resolve the curiosity of non-Natives about why they are in a particular place and what they mean. This analysis shares the cultural understandings of tribal representatives who participate in these ethnographic studies. Studies used in the analysis were funded by U.S. federal agencies, supported by federally recognized Native American tribal governments, and composed with the cultural understandings shared and made public by tribally appointed elders to clarify the conundrums that are Storied Rocks. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Rock Art Studies)

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21 pages, 8974 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Redefining Women’s Bodies from the Perspective of Iranian Contemporary Female Artists

by Paria Karami

Arts 2024, 13(6), 167; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts13060167 - 7 Nov 2024

Abstract

In contemporary art, the representation of the “body”, particularly the female body, has emerged as a crucial site of feminist critique and exploration. This is especially evident in the works of Iranian female artists, who challenge prevailing local and global discourses surrounding female [...] Read more.

In contemporary art, the representation of the “body”, particularly the female body, has emerged as a crucial site of feminist critique and exploration. This is especially evident in the works of Iranian female artists, who challenge prevailing local and global discourses surrounding female embodiment. This study examines how artists such as Shirin Neshat (b. 1957), Parastou Forouhar (b. 1962), and Shadi Ghadirian (b. 1974) use their art to redefine representations of women’s bodies within the socio-political context of post-revolutionary Iran. The restrictive post-revolutionary environment, marked by mandatory hijab laws and stringent social codes for women, has profoundly impacted artistic expression. These artists navigate this complex landscape, utilizing their work to contest both the imposed limitations and the Western gaze that often reduces Iranian women to stereotypes. By interrogating these artistic representations through a feminist lens, this paper explores the intersection of gender, politics, culture, and artistic expression, examining how these artists contribute to a broader redefinition of the female body in contemporary feminist art. This study employs a qualitative, descriptive–analytical approach grounded in feminist theory, including perspectives beyond Western thought, to analyze how these Iranian artists navigate, subvert, and reimagine traditional representations of women. By analyzing specific works, this study aims to offer a nuanced understanding of how these artists challenge both Iranian and global audiences to reconsider the boundaries of gender, identity, and power within their specific cultural and historical context. Full article

(This article belongs to the Section Visual Arts)

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23 pages, 8786 KiB

Open AccessEssay

Staging Statecraft: Dance Festivals and Cultural Representations in Konark, Odisha, India

by Mihika Banerjee

Arts 2024, 13(6), 166; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts13060166 - 4 Nov 2024

Abstract

This essay argues that dance festivals are choreographed spaces that shape cultural heritage. The Konark Dance Festival in Odisha, India, is an annual program situated around the Konark Sun Temple, a UNESCO-recognized World Heritage Site. The following explores the interrelationship between the modern [...] Read more.

This essay argues that dance festivals are choreographed spaces that shape cultural heritage. The Konark Dance Festival in Odisha, India, is an annual program situated around the Konark Sun Temple, a UNESCO-recognized World Heritage Site. The following explores the interrelationship between the modern space of the temple monument and the modern format of festival dances in Konark. The festival project juxtaposes the monument’s archaeological value with the dances’ cultural value in choreographic neatness, which requires a critical interrogation to determine the negotiations, appropriations, and discomfort these processes otherwise entail. This article also branches out into cultural discourses beyond the stated festival that examine the historical, diplomatic, and touristic networks the dance festival often encompasses. Following the creation of the modern state of Odisha (in 1936) and of the independent nation of India (in 1947), Odisha regional dance forms were remodelled to produce the state dance Odissi, which gained national “classical” recognition in the 1960s and subsequent international repute. Odissi dance has subsequently been formulated and globally circulated as an anthropomorphic symbol of the geopolitical state of Odisha. Through ethnography, visual study, and choreographic analysis, this essay explores the (re)presentational aspects of the region-state in and through dance, which rhetorically inform the staging of the Konark Dance Festival. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Choreographing Society)

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16 pages, 11928 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Artistic Production in a Necropolis in Motion

by Nico Staring

Arts 2024, 13(6), 165; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts13060165 - 30 Oct 2024

Abstract

The present article studies aspects of the artistic production at New Kingdom Saqqara, a necropolis of the ancient Egyptian royal residence city Memphis. Following a brief review of the functions of ancient Egyptian tombs, this article will first set out to scrutinize the [...] Read more.

The present article studies aspects of the artistic production at New Kingdom Saqqara, a necropolis of the ancient Egyptian royal residence city Memphis. Following a brief review of the functions of ancient Egyptian tombs, this article will first set out to scrutinize the tomb-making section of society (e.g., size, membership). Second, the corpus of tombs will be reviewed to uncover the diverse nature of the tomb owners and to investigate access to resources required for tomb making. Third, the article will proceed to place the tombs in spatial and temporal context and reflect on the artistic production in a necropolis in motion. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ancient Egyptian Art Studies: Art in Motion, a Social Tool of Power and Resistance)

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8 pages, 187 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Towards a Study of Incidental Music Through the Lens of Applied Musicology

by Monika Novaković

Arts 2024, 13(6), 164; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts13060164 - 29 Oct 2024

Abstract

In this article, applied musicology is discussed in the context of research on incidental music in Serbia—a task which, to my knowledge, has not been undertaken so far. In recent years, the body of publications on applied musicology has notably expanded, resulting in [...] Read more.

In this article, applied musicology is discussed in the context of research on incidental music in Serbia—a task which, to my knowledge, has not been undertaken so far. In recent years, the body of publications on applied musicology has notably expanded, resulting in a number of important articles and a landmark collective monograph. This, in turn, prompted me to view my main research interests—applied music and, in particular, incidental music—through the lens of applied musicology and offer my perspective on the possibilities of regarding incidental music as a field that can benefit from applied-musicological interventions. In this article, I draw attention to challenges that arise once a musicologist sets out to analyse incidental music. I undertake this by (a) presenting what I define as a reconstructive-analytical method in approaching incidental music and (b) utilising the narrative “behind the scenes” of my doctoral research. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Applied Musicology and Ethnomusicology)

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