Olympic Games' Cultural Olympiad

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Good submitted to the Faculty of the College of Arts and Sciences of American University in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts Performing Art: Chair afren Chandler Valerie Morris Jinmfer RadW name Dean o f the College ^ /?ff Date 1998 American University Washington, D.C. 20016. iamm» vmsmmv mam taoi Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. UMI Number: 13 96334 Copyright 1999 by Good, Debra J. All rights reserved. UMI Microform 1396334 Copyright 1999, by UMI Company. All rights reserved. This microform edition is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. UMI 300 North Zeeb Road Ann Arbor, MI 48103 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. To My Family Michael, Alex and Harry Stutchbury Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. THE OLYMPIC GAMES' CULTURAL OLYMPIAD: IDENTITY AND MANAGEMENT By Debra J. Good ABSTRACT This thesis examines the relationship between the identity, growth and development, and the management of the modem Olympic Games' Cultural Olympiad. Since the fine arts competitions first appeared at the modem Olympic Games in Stockholm in 1912, National Organizing Committees have struggled to appreciate or understand the role and significance of the cultural games and have either been unwilling or uncertain of how to integrate the arts with the sporting games. Despite the size, budget, success and national importance of recent Cultural Olympiads, it is one of the least known o f international art festivals among both art world professionals and the general public. The thesis will analyze information collected mostly from original sources including interviews, International Olympic Committee minutes, IOC Cultural Committee minutes, Olympic Bulletin articles, Pierre de Coubertin's Memoirs, National Olympic Committee reports, research papers presented to the International Olympic Academy and newspaper articles. ii Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. PREFACE On June 23, the re-establishment of the International Olympic Games was proclaimed through the initiative of Pierre de Coubertin. Consequently the first modem Olympics were gloriously celebrated in the restored stadium at Athens in April 1896, for all the people of the world, in the reign of His Majesty George I, King of Greece. Baron Pierre de Fredy de Coubertin, founding father of the modem Olympics, is buried in the Bois de Vaux cemetery in Lausanne, Switzerland. But, in testimony to his commitment to the revival and philosophy of the modem games and at his own request, Coubertin's heart is buried at the site of the ancient Games in Olympia, Greece, the ultimate romantic gesture from a man who dedicated his life's work to Olympism. The message above is inscribed on the Olympia monument. m Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank the following: Karen Chandler, Valerie Morris and Jennifer Radboume for their encouragement and always detailed analysis and comments Ruth Perrenoud and staff of the Olympic Study Center in Lausanne for their time, support and assistance. Jeffrey Babcock, Robert Fitzpatrick, Craig Hassall and Jonah Jones. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT ii PREFACE iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS iv ABBREVIATIONS vi CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION 1 2. THE ORIGINS AND RATIONALE FOR INCLUDING ART 9 3. THE FINE ARTS COMPETITIONS: IDENTIFYING THE ISSUES 17 4. THE INTERNATIONAL OLYMPIC COMMITTEE 35 5. THE SHIFT FROM EXHIBITIONS TO FESTIVALS 41 6. THE CULTURAL OLYMPIAD: A RELINQUISHED IDENTITY 51 7. CONCLUSION 61 APPENDIX A 70 APPENDIX B 71 BIBLIOGRAPHY 72 v Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. ABBREVIATIONS ACOG Atlanta Committee for Organizing the Olympic Games CO Cultural Olympiad Has been broadly used from 1952 onwards. Olympiad specifically refers to the four-year period between the games. IF International Federation IOA International Olympic Academy IOC International Olympic Committee NOC National Organizing Committee OAF Olympic Arts Festival and Cultural Olympiad have been used interchangeably by the host organizing committees. Olympic Arts Festival has become more common in the latter part of the 20th Century. SOCOG Sydney Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION To place the IOC’s role from the outset far above that of the simple sports groups. Coubertin, Olympic Memoirs1 The International Olympic Committee’s role was determined to be “far above that of the simple sport groups” because, for Pierre de Coubertin, Olympism was not just about sports, it was about a spiritual way of life, embracing the classical Greek ideal of, in his now oft quoted words - “the marriage of mind and muscle.”2 Coubertin’s educational experience was the impetus behind his pursuit o f a revival of the Olympic Games in two main ways. At the college Saint-Ignace (Saint Ignatius School) in Paris he excelled at his studies, reportedly spending as much as 11 hours a day on Greek, Latin, history and mathematics.3 But to his disappointment physical exercise was not a part of the official curriculum. As an adult, Coubertin became an amateur athlete who believed sports should be integral to any education. He was an uncharacteristic aristocrat, an 1 Pierre de Coubertin, Olympic Memoirs. (International Olympic Committee, 1979), 3. 2 Ibid., 49. 3 Davida Kristy, Coubertin's Olympics: How the Games Began. (Lemer Publications Company, Minneapolis, 1995), 15. 1 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 2 Anglophile choosing a career in pedagogy while continuing to pursue his interest in amateur sports. His pedagogical beliefs had been influenced by a number of sources including eurthymia - the educational philosophy that promoted balance in the development of mind and body; contemporary English and American educational practices; the French philosopher Hippolyte Taine and the Reverend Arnold - the headmaster of England’s Rubgy College.4 For Coubertin the Ancient Games were the perfect model for bringing into practice his pedagogical ideals. He wrote that In order to make sport nationally popular, I had to make it international, because, in France, foreign competition is the only effective and enduring stimulus. It was therefore necessary to organize cooperation between our young friends of sport and those of other nations who had done physical education before us in the past.5 Coubertin had always intended for art to be an integral part of the modem Olympic Games, but, for various reasons, he waited until after three Olympic festivals before attempting to introduce culture into the Games. He expected the 1900 and 1904 Games to include a cultural program but last minute changes to the location of the host cities saw the cultural plans excluded. Although disappointed, Coubertin stressed that “the short stages method” had always seemed the best method for any 4 Dr. Henri Pouret,The Men who Influenced Coubertin's Thought, Report of the Thirteenth Session nf the International Olympic Academy at Olympia. (Athens, IOC, 1973), 81. 5 Quoted in Professor L. Diem with Mr. Otto Szymiczek,The Ideas and Ideology o f Pierre de Coubertin, Report of the Thirteenth

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