Imaging the Almeh: Transformation and Multiculturalization of the Eastern Dancer In
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IMAGING THE ALMEH: TRANSFORMATION AND MULTICULTURALIZATION OF THE EASTERN DANCER IN PAINTING, THEATRE, AND FILM, 1850-1950 A dissertation presented to the faculty of the College of Fine Arts of Ohio University In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Philosophy Rihab Kassatly Bagnole November 2005 This dissertation entitled IMAGING THE ALMEH: TRANSFORMATION AND MULTICULTURALIZATION OF THE EASTERN DANCER IN PAINTING, THEATRE, AND FILM, 1850-1950 by Rihab Kassatly Bagnole has been approved for the School of Interdisciplinary Arts and the College of Fine Arts by Charles Buchanan Assistant Professor of Interdisciplinary Arts Charles A. McWeeny Interim Dean, College of Fine Arts BAGNOLE, RIHAB KASSATLY Ph.D. November 2005. Interdisciplinary Arts Imaging the Almeh: Transformation and Multiculturalization of the Eastern Dancer in Painting, Theatre, and film 1850-1950 (349pp.) Director of Dissertation: Charles Buchanan This dissertation explores the images of the Middle Eastern and North African dancer, also known as raqisah sharqi, almeh, and belly dancer, and the role of Western and Eastern male artists in developing her persona. It argues that Jean-Léon Gérôme, Oscar Wilde, and Farid al-Atrash position the dancer according to their own agendas and persuade the viewers to gaze at her to advance their art. Al-Atrash, however, enables the dancer to suggest elements other than her sexuality when she dances to his music. The artworks of these artists are examined through the theory of the gaze, the postcolonial double marginalization of women, and the discourse of Orientalism. The representations of the almeh in Gérôme’s paintings are also explored via methods of feminist art historians that advocate interpretation through the examination of cultural and political context. This methodology reveals the effect of the Middle East in the development of Gérôme’s realistic style and exposes his bourgeois inclination, which is similar to Ingres and Delacroix, in portraying nude women and prostitutes. Gérôme’s almeh complements the representations of Eastern women by other Orientalists. The exotic dancer also attracted Western women, who liked her freedom and at the time were demanding their rights in the early twentieth century. Consequently, these women forced the film industries to cater to their needs. In response, the silent cinema offered them Rudolf Valentino as a sheik to satisfy their emotional and sexual wishes and to restore patriarchal power. Such films portray destructive aspects of Eastern cultures and emphasize Western supremacy. Other films reveal the special circumstances whereby a Western woman is permitted to adopt the Eastern dancer, who represents the femme fatale, as her ideal. The Egyptian cinema imitates Western art and presents the early Eastern dancer as an Arab femme fatale. Farid al-Atrash changes this image by presenting Samia Gamal as an artist worthy of international recognition. She, however, succeeds because al- Atrash’s dance-music influenced her to borrow from Western choreography to express her art. The Western and Eastern artists motivate the Eastern dancer and globalize her performance. Approved: Charles Buchanan Assistant Professor of Interdisciplinary Arts Acknowledgments I would like to thank my committee, Dr. Charles Buchanan, Dr. Dora Wilson, Dr. Keith Harris, and Dr. Zelma Badu-Young for their commitment and insight; Dr. Timothy Wutrich for his genuine dedication and comments on this research; the staff of Alden Library at Ohio University for their timely help; the Arnot Art Museum in Elmira, New York for providing a rare slide of “The Love Token” by Gérôme; the staff of the Special Collection at the University of Cincinnatti for making available the autobiographical book Le Fayoum, le Sinai, et Petra by Paul Lenoir. My special gratitude goes to my spouse John William Bagnole for his continous love, encouragement, support, and help; my brothers Bassam and Bachar Kassatly for sharing their memories; and my wonderful daughters Veronica Aurora Palmyra and Alexandra Sabrina Zenobia for their understanding and patience. To the daring dancers who never cease marking the history of women and the men who support them. 7 Table of Contents Abstract..................................................................................................................................3 Acknowledgements................................................................................................................5 Dedication..............................................................................................................................6 List of Illustrations.................................................................................................................8 Introduction............................................................................................................................11 Chapter One: The Eastern Dancer in the Paintings of Jean-Léon Gérôme............................28 Chapter Two: The Transformation of the Eastern Dancer into a femme fatale.....................92 Chapter Three: The Eastern Dancer in Western Cinema.......................................................135 Chapter Four: The Eastern Dancer in the Early Movies of Farid al-Atrash ..........................186 Conclusion .............................................................................................................................266 Works Cited ...........................................................................................................................272 Filmography...........................................................................................................................300 Illustrations ............................................................................................................................314 8 List of Illustrations 1. Jean-Léon Gérôme, The Cock Fight, 1846. 56.5” x 81.5”. Musée d’Orsay, Paris............314 2. Jean-Léon Gérôme, A Greek Interior, 1850. 25” x 35.5”. Lost.........................................315 3. Félix Nadar, Marie Christine Leroux, 1861. Photograph. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York ...........................................................................................................316 4. Jean-Léon Gérôme, The Reception of the Siamese Ambassadors at Fountainbleau. 1864. 50.5” x 102.25”. Musée Nationale de Versailles, Versailles, France ..............317 5. Jean-Léon Gérôme, Dance of the Almeh, 1863. 19.75” x 32”. Dayton Art Institute, Dayton, Ohio..............................................................................................................318 6. Jean-Léon Gérôme, Sabre Dance in a Café, 1875. 32” x 31.5”. Herbert F. Johnson Museum, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York .......................................................319 7. Jean-Léon Gérôme, Sabre Dance before a Pasha, 1875. 26.25” x 42.25”. Location unknown.....................................................................................................................320 8. Jean-Léon Gérôme, Baton Dance, 1885. Lost...................................................................321 9. Jean-Léon Gérôme, Arab Girl With Waterpipe, 1873. 32” x 21.25”. Private collection ..322 10. Jean-Léon Gérôme, Woman of Cairo, 1882. 32” x 25.5”. Private collection..................323 11. Jean-Léon Gérôme, Arab Girl in Doorway, 1873. 21.5” x 16”. Private collection.........324 12. Jean-Léon Gérôme, Cairene Women, 1872. Unknown dimension. Lost.........................325 13. Jean-Léon Gérôme, Souvenir of Cairo, 1873. 20 x 16”. Museo de Arte, Ponce, Puerto-Rico ................................................................................................................326 14. Jean-Léon Gérôme, Almeh at the Window of Her Moucharabieh, 1887. 22” x 18”. Location unknown .....................................................................................................327 9 15. Jean-Léon Gérôme, An Almeh (also The Oriental), 1882. 18.25” x 15”. Private collection....................................................................................................................328 16. Jean-Léon Gérôme, The Singer (also The Dancing Girl), 1880. 22” x 18”. Hecksher Museum, Huntington, New York...............................................................................329 17. Jean-Léon Gérôme, Woman of Cairo at Her Door, 1897. 32.25” x 26.25”. Syracuse University Art Collection, Syracuse, New York .......................................................330 18. Jean-Léon Gérôme, The Rose (also The Love Token), 1887. 36.5” x 25.25” Arnot Art Gallery, Elmira, New York........................................................................................331 19. Jean-Léon Gérôme, Almeh Playing Chess in a Café, 1870. 25.75” x 21.5”. Private Collection...................................................................................................................332 20. Jean-Léon Gérôme, Terrace of The Seraglio, 1886. 32” x 48”. Private collection.........333 21. Jean-Léon Gérôme, Entry of Christ into Jerusalem, 1897. 31.5” x 50”. Musée Garret, Vesoul, France ...........................................................................................................334 22. Eugène Delacroix. Jewish Wedding in Morocco, 1839. 41 5/16” x 55 5/16”. Musée du Paris, Musée de Louvre..............................................................................................335 23. Roger Fenton, Egyptian Dancing Girl. Albumen print, 1858.