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Lens under a Mask. On the Theatrical Aspect of Photography by Claude Cahun

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Holewinska J.

Konteksty - Polska Sztuka Ludowa

2007

vol. 61

issue 3-4(278-279)

261-267

Surrealism and photography share a fascination with duality, the mirrored reflection, and the doppelganger. The first three decades of the twentieth century were also a time when not only taking photographs but also the photograph as such, conceived as an effect of activity, assumed the features of a theatre, when photographic reflections became simultaneously theatrical thought, and when the limits of the traditional approach to assorted domains of the arts were crossed. One of the artists situated on the borderline of the arts - between the theatre and photography - was Claude Cahun, a niece of the writer Marcel Schwob, who in the theatralisation of her own person went much further than Duchamp for whom it was only a 'staged' episode. Duchamp as Rose Sélavy remained two persons, while Claude Cahun standing in front of the lens, although disguised, was still the same person ... Incessantly questioning her identity, she created an unusual photographic theatre (indistinguishable from 'life'). Who was Claude Cahun? A woman or a man? A photographer or a photographed object? An actress or a director? 'Herself' or 'the other'? Or perhaps she was Leiris' Judith?

A Pearl from an Old Curiosity Shop

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Holewinska J.

Konteksty - Polska Sztuka Ludowa

2006

vol. 60

issue 2(273)

175-177

The authoress attempts at a brief presentation of the life and works of Nikolai Evreinov (1879-1953)– one of the leading figures of the Russian Silver Age. This extended biogramme mentions both Evreinov's involvement in successive artistic initiatives, including the establishment of the 'Under the Homeless Dog' club, his activity in 'The Crooked Mirror', and theoretical texts. She draws attention to the multitude of professions pursued by Evreinov, who was a director, a philosopher, an actor, a playwright and a theoretician of art. In the attached (pp 169-171) excerpt of Evreinovs book 'Towards the Philosophy of the Theatre' (1915) a question is asked about the essence of the theatre by opposing the generally accepted perception of the theatre as entertainment or narrowly comprehended 'art'. Nikolai Evreinov saw the presence of the theatre in simplest human activity, claiming that each person possesses a theatrical drive and instinct which compel him to conduct constant transformations both of reality and himself. Stress is placed on the fact that we render our life theatrical already in childhood, if only in the assorted games we play. The role of games among Indian tribes, Mexicans, etc. is also discussed. Finally, Evreinov was one of the first to introduce the concept of the 'theatralisation of life', which remains fundamental for such domains as the anthropology of the theatre or performance studies.

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2 Konteksty - Polska Sztuka Ludowa

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1 2006

2 Holewinska J.

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Lens under a Mask. On the Theatrical Aspect of Photography by Claude Cahun

A Pearl from an Old Curiosity Shop