Ruth St Denis
Photograph
ca.1906 (photographed)
ca.1906 (photographed)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Studio photographic postcard published by Rotary Photographic of the dancer, Ruth St Denis (1879-1968), in the 'Dance of Taste' from Radha created by her in 1906. This is one of a series of images in which to simulate the swirl of the skirt for the camera, invisible threads were held by the photographer's assistant out of the camera's range.
Radha, The Mystic dance of the five senses was created in 1905 and received its first public performance 28 January 1906 in New York. It was then included in programme for her long European tour, 1906-1909.
Radha was presented to music from Leo Delibes' Lakme A description of the Dance of Taste describes how St Denis dances holding a simple clay bowl. 'She sways, then brings the bowl to her lips, drinking deeply. The liquid flows into her body, and she abandons herself to an intoxicated whirling that culminates in a deep back bend, She almost loses her balance but recovers and sharply fings the bowl from her, then sinks to the ground in collapse'.
Ruth St Denis (1879-1968) was a pioneer of American and European dancers who in the early twentieth century became fascinated by images and descriptions of the dance, music, mythology, philosophy and dress of countries including Greece, Egypt, India, North Africa, Japan and Java influenced the work of the American dancer Ruth St. Denis (1879-1968) throughout her long career.Initially she was entranced with Egyptian culture and imagery from her late teens, after seeing an image of the goddess Isis on an advertisement for Turkish cigarettes, and with Indian dance having seeing dancers in an East Indian Village at Coney Island in 1904 where, she recalled in her autobiography: 'the fascination of India caught hold of me'. She began avidly reading about the different cultures, and on her long 1906-09 European tour including several visits to London she presented her Indian Temple Dance Radha, Incense an Art Nouveau dance inspired by Delsartean undulating arm movements and Cobras a snake charmer, street dance inspired by The Streets of Delhi at Coney Island. While in London she regularly visited the Elgin Marbles and the Egyptian room at the British Museum, and the Indian Department of the South Kensington Museum.
Radha, The Mystic dance of the five senses was created in 1905 and received its first public performance 28 January 1906 in New York. It was then included in programme for her long European tour, 1906-1909.
Radha was presented to music from Leo Delibes' Lakme A description of the Dance of Taste describes how St Denis dances holding a simple clay bowl. 'She sways, then brings the bowl to her lips, drinking deeply. The liquid flows into her body, and she abandons herself to an intoxicated whirling that culminates in a deep back bend, She almost loses her balance but recovers and sharply fings the bowl from her, then sinks to the ground in collapse'.
Ruth St Denis (1879-1968) was a pioneer of American and European dancers who in the early twentieth century became fascinated by images and descriptions of the dance, music, mythology, philosophy and dress of countries including Greece, Egypt, India, North Africa, Japan and Java influenced the work of the American dancer Ruth St. Denis (1879-1968) throughout her long career.Initially she was entranced with Egyptian culture and imagery from her late teens, after seeing an image of the goddess Isis on an advertisement for Turkish cigarettes, and with Indian dance having seeing dancers in an East Indian Village at Coney Island in 1904 where, she recalled in her autobiography: 'the fascination of India caught hold of me'. She began avidly reading about the different cultures, and on her long 1906-09 European tour including several visits to London she presented her Indian Temple Dance Radha, Incense an Art Nouveau dance inspired by Delsartean undulating arm movements and Cobras a snake charmer, street dance inspired by The Streets of Delhi at Coney Island. While in London she regularly visited the Elgin Marbles and the Egyptian room at the British Museum, and the Indian Department of the South Kensington Museum.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | Ruth St Denis (generic title) |
| Materials and techniques | Photographic print on card |
| Brief description | Photographic postcard of the dancer, Ruth St Denis (1879-1968), in Hindu Rhada, Rotary Photographic Series, ca.1906 |
| Physical description | Photographic postcard of the dancer, Ruth St Denis (1879-1968), in the Dance of Dilirium of the Senses from Radha published by Rotary Photographic Series. The postcard features a full length profile image of St Denis who is shown with her arms raised above her head, holding a bowl between her hands. She is wearing a cropped, short sleeved blouse, and a skirt which appears to be swirling out into wide folds around her. She has bells round her ankles and her feet are bare. |
| Dimensions |
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| Credit line | Cyril W. Beaumont Bequest |
| Object history | The photograph originally formed part of the London Archives of the Dance; the Archives never achieved an independent home and part of the collection was stored with Cyril Beaumont, where it became inextricably mixed with his own collection and came to the Museum as part of the Cyril Beaumont Bequest. |
| Subject depicted | |
| Summary | Studio photographic postcard published by Rotary Photographic of the dancer, Ruth St Denis (1879-1968), in the 'Dance of Taste' from Radha created by her in 1906. This is one of a series of images in which to simulate the swirl of the skirt for the camera, invisible threads were held by the photographer's assistant out of the camera's range. Radha, The Mystic dance of the five senses was created in 1905 and received its first public performance 28 January 1906 in New York. It was then included in programme for her long European tour, 1906-1909. Radha was presented to music from Leo Delibes' Lakme A description of the Dance of Taste describes how St Denis dances holding a simple clay bowl. 'She sways, then brings the bowl to her lips, drinking deeply. The liquid flows into her body, and she abandons herself to an intoxicated whirling that culminates in a deep back bend, She almost loses her balance but recovers and sharply fings the bowl from her, then sinks to the ground in collapse'. Ruth St Denis (1879-1968) was a pioneer of American and European dancers who in the early twentieth century became fascinated by images and descriptions of the dance, music, mythology, philosophy and dress of countries including Greece, Egypt, India, North Africa, Japan and Java influenced the work of the American dancer Ruth St. Denis (1879-1968) throughout her long career.Initially she was entranced with Egyptian culture and imagery from her late teens, after seeing an image of the goddess Isis on an advertisement for Turkish cigarettes, and with Indian dance having seeing dancers in an East Indian Village at Coney Island in 1904 where, she recalled in her autobiography: 'the fascination of India caught hold of me'. She began avidly reading about the different cultures, and on her long 1906-09 European tour including several visits to London she presented her Indian Temple Dance Radha, Incense an Art Nouveau dance inspired by Delsartean undulating arm movements and Cobras a snake charmer, street dance inspired by The Streets of Delhi at Coney Island. While in London she regularly visited the Elgin Marbles and the Egyptian room at the British Museum, and the Indian Department of the South Kensington Museum. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | S.159-2016 |
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| Record created | April 13, 2016 |
| Record URL |
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