I have just visited this great exhibition, at the Petite Gallerie of the Museum of Louvre, Paris. It's about body in motion, but mainly focused on dance.
It's been a long time since I last visited the Louvre and I was very pleased. I am no dancer myself, but I was drawn to it by looking at the exhibition catalogue in a library, where I have seen the three main ideas around which the exhibition is organised:
- Turning motion into matter
- Codifying action
- Sequencing movement
You would agree that such ideas would appeal a researcher in martial arts studies. I leave here for you a few lines about what I liked about this exhibition.
At the entry, your welcoming committee is a silent movie realised in 1922, first movie of its kind to be displayed during entr'acte of a theatre or ballet. Featuring impressive images of a young lady dancing on a glass, filmed from below.
You are then invited to go through the three main rooms according to the titles listed above, with objects from the Antiquity to the early 20th c., from East to West. Here are the one I most liked, or those who really caught my eye.
If you have time, I suggest you visit this exhibition as well. It's on display until next July (2017).