Anna Pavlova in the ballet 'Oriental Fantasy'

Bakst, Léon (1866-1924)

Item type:

drawing

Date of creation:

1913

Height:

30.0 cm  (11 13/16 in.)

Width:

23.0 cm  (9 1/16 in.)

Technique / Medium:

pencil with watercolor on paper

Description

Born Lev Rosenberg to a middle-class Jewish family in Belarus, Léon Bakst studied art in St. Petersburg and Paris. His close collaboration with the dancer and choreographer Serge Diaghilev resulted in striking costumes and scenery for the Ballets Russes. Drawing on folk art, Middle Eastern, and Asian motifs, Bakst’s sensuous designs caused a sensation throughout Europe.

The drawing is a costume design for the equally celebrated ballerina Anna Pavlova (1881–1931) in the production of Oriental Fanstasy (also called Ballet Hindu), which opened in London in October 1913, and was performed later that same month in Boston.

Isabella Stewart Gardner’s passion for music and dance nearly equalled her interest in the visual arts. The avant-garde dancer Ruth St. Denis performed at Fenway Court in 1906, and these drawings present further evidence of Mrs. Gardner’s interest in performance. Both drawings were purchased in 1914 at a touring exhibition of Bakst’s drawings held at the Boston Art Club. ||

Source: Alan Chong, "Ida Rubinstein as Saint Sebastian, Anna Pavlova in the Ballet 'Oriental Fantasy,'" in Eye of the Beholder, edited by Alan Chong et al. (Boston: ISGM and Beacon Press, 2003): 122.

People as subjects

Pavlova, Anna (1881-1931) (Dancer)

Iconclass

48CC844
ballet dress - CC - female

Musical works

Oriental fantasy (Choreographic work : Sergei Zajlich)

RIdIM images

Image URLs

image link 1

RIdIM record id

5577