Arch of Hysteria. Between Madness and Ecstasy
The Museum der Moderne devotes a grand thematic exhibition to the motif of the arched body. Titled Arch of Hysteria. Between Madness and Ecstasy. A profoundly ambivalent figure between loss of self-control and utter self-possession, the so-called 鈥渁rc de cercle,鈥� the 鈥済rand鈥� or 鈥渉ysterical arch,鈥� is an alluring motif with a long tradition in the history of art and culture. It appears both in depictions of dancers and acrobats and in illustrations of physical or psychological illness: the hyperextended (female) body can convey ecstatic rapture or a psychotic disorder as well as a virtuoso鈥檚 body control and expressiveness.
Arch of Hysteria is the first exhibition to focus entirely on this potent and prolific motif. Works of art from the past century drawn from a wide variety of contexts demonstrate the versatility of pose鈥檚 expressive potential鈥攊ncluding its transmutation into abstract yet no less evocative and distinctive forms. The presentation sheds light on the motif鈥檚 (art-)historical roots as well as its more recent adaptations in painting, drawing, sculpture, photography, and video and performance art; several artists are creating works especially for the exhibition.
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The Museum der Moderne devotes a grand thematic exhibition to the motif of the arched body. Titled Arch of Hysteria. Between Madness and Ecstasy. A profoundly ambivalent figure between loss of self-control and utter self-possession, the so-called 鈥渁rc de cercle,鈥� the 鈥済rand鈥� or 鈥渉ysterical arch,鈥� is an alluring motif with a long tradition in the history of art and culture. It appears both in depictions of dancers and acrobats and in illustrations of physical or psychological illness: the hyperextended (female) body can convey ecstatic rapture or a psychotic disorder as well as a virtuoso鈥檚 body control and expressiveness.
Arch of Hysteria is the first exhibition to focus entirely on this potent and prolific motif. Works of art from the past century drawn from a wide variety of contexts demonstrate the versatility of pose鈥檚 expressive potential鈥攊ncluding its transmutation into abstract yet no less evocative and distinctive forms. The presentation sheds light on the motif鈥檚 (art-)historical roots as well as its more recent adaptations in painting, drawing, sculpture, photography, and video and performance art; several artists are creating works especially for the exhibition.
Artists on show
- Adi Nes
- Agnès Geoffray
- Albert Renger-Patzsch
- Alexandra Bircken
- Alfred Czerny
- Alfred Kubin
- Athanasius Kircher
- Auguste Rodin
- Barbis Ruder
- Charlotte Rudolph
- Denis Darzacq
- Eglé Budvytyté
- Ellen Auerbach
- Erika Giovanna Klien
- Erwin Lang
- Franz Fiedler
- Friedrich Siegfried Goldscheider
- Gelitin
- Georg Herold
- Günter Brus
- Gustav Klimt
- Gustave Doré
- Helene von Taussig
- Joachim Koester
- Joseph Beuys
- Karl Reisenbichler
- Käthe Kollwitz
- Leslie de Melo
- Lotte Reiniger
- Madame d'Ora
- Markus Vallazza
- Max Ernst
- Meta Mettig-Ellenberger
- Mileva Roller
- Nola Bunke
- Paul Maris Louis Pierre Richer
- Rainer Wölzl
- Richard Höck
- Ronit Porat
- Rudolf Koppitz
- Salvador Dalí
- Tilman Peschel
- Ulrike Lienbacher
- Valerie Schmidt
- Valie Export
- Volker Saul
- Wiebke Siem
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