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From the distance of death : “Le Radeau de La Méduse” (1818-1819) de Théodore Géricault e “The Raft of George W. Bush” (2006) de Joel-Peter Witkin
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Este trabalho tem como objetivo fazer uma análise comparativa da representação do cadáver na pintura “Le Radeau de La Méduse” (1819) de Théodore Géricault e na fotografia “The Raft of George W. Bush” (2006) de Joel-Peter Witkin. Estas obras dependem dos contextos histórico-políticos em que se inserem, na medida em que ambas foram concebidas de um ponto de vista politicamente empenhado: no caso de Géricault, contribuindo para a crise política do conservadorismo pós-napoleónico em França precipitada pelo naufrágio da fragata Méduse em 1816; e, no caso de Witkin, criticando a administração de George W. Bush nos Estados Unidos da América, na sequência da invasão do Iraque. Como tal, para desenvolver esta análise será necessário primeiro efectuar uma contextualização histórico-política, uma vez esta ser crucial no entendimento das obras e dos artistas: no caso da pintura de Géricault, trabalharei sobre a forma como este segue elementos convencionais da pintura histórica da escola neoclássica, ao mesmo tempo que se opõe à tradição ensinada na academia de Jacques-Louis David; e, em Witkin, como ao modelar a sua fotografia pela composição do quadro de Géricault, entra em diálogo direto com este. Ao mesmo tempo, o interesse pela pintura histórica em Géricault e pela estética da fotografia Vitoriana em Witkin revela uma vontade de retomar convenções artísticas do passado, subvertendo-as em favor de uma crítica ao contexto em que se inserem.
A análise faz-se através da representação do cadáver que se torna, assim, um elemento privilegiado para estudar estas contiguidades: por um lado, como esta é executada por artistas diferentes em meios artísticos diferentes e, por outro, como a figura do corpo pode ser um elemento expressivo na crítica a regimes políticos nos dois contextos históricos sob análise. No cruzamento de questões estéticas e políticas torna-se útil também analisar o conceito de necropolítica de Achille Mbembe (2011), na esteira de Agamben (1995) e Foucault (1976), nomeadamente no que diz respeito à teorização da morte como instrumento de poder e soberania, uma vez que tanto Géricault como Witkin exploram realidades em que a morte e o poder estão intimamente relacionados. Deste modo, analisando e contrapondo estas duas obras, pretendo estudar o modo como a representação do cadáver pode ser um veículo de crítica política através da arte.
The main goal of this study is to make a comparative analysis of the representation of the corpse in the painting “Le Radeau de La Méduse” (1819) by Théodore Géricault and the photograph “The Raft of George W. Bush” (2006) by Joel-Peter Witkin. These works are intimately connected with the historical and political contexts in which they are inserted, in the sense that both were conceptualized from a politically committed perspective: in the case of Géricault, by contributing to the political crisis of French post-Napoleonic conservatism, precipitated by the wreck of the naval frigate Méduse in 1816; and, in the case of Witkin, by criticizing the George W. Bush administration in the United States of America, following the invasion of Iraq. As such, to make this analysis I will start by contextualizing historically and politically both the works and the artists, seeing as that is essential for their understanding. Regarding Géricault’s painting, I will explore his use of certain conventional elements of neoclassical painting and simultaneous opposition to the School of Jacques-Louis David; and regarding Witkin, about how, in modelling his photograph on the composition of Géricault’s painting, he enters in a direct dialog with it. Furthermore, Géricault’s interest in historical painting and Witkin’s interest in the aesthetics of Victorian photography reveal a wish to return to artistical conventions of the past and subvert them in order to criticize the reality of their present time. The analysis will be done through the representation of the corpse, which becomes a privileged element in which to study these contiguities: firstly, how it is executed by different artists in different art media, and secondly, how the corpse can be an expressive element in criticizing the political regimes of both historical contexts under analysis. In this crossing of aesthetic and political issues, it becomes useful to understand the concept of Necropolitics, developed by Achille Mbembe (2011), following Agamben (1995) and Foucault (1976), particularly regarding the theorization of death as an instrument of power and sovereignty, since both Géricault and Witkin explore realities in which death and power are intimately connected. In this way, by analyzing and opposing the two works, I intend to study the way in which the representation of the corpse can be a vehicle for political discourse through art.
The main goal of this study is to make a comparative analysis of the representation of the corpse in the painting “Le Radeau de La Méduse” (1819) by Théodore Géricault and the photograph “The Raft of George W. Bush” (2006) by Joel-Peter Witkin. These works are intimately connected with the historical and political contexts in which they are inserted, in the sense that both were conceptualized from a politically committed perspective: in the case of Géricault, by contributing to the political crisis of French post-Napoleonic conservatism, precipitated by the wreck of the naval frigate Méduse in 1816; and, in the case of Witkin, by criticizing the George W. Bush administration in the United States of America, following the invasion of Iraq. As such, to make this analysis I will start by contextualizing historically and politically both the works and the artists, seeing as that is essential for their understanding. Regarding Géricault’s painting, I will explore his use of certain conventional elements of neoclassical painting and simultaneous opposition to the School of Jacques-Louis David; and regarding Witkin, about how, in modelling his photograph on the composition of Géricault’s painting, he enters in a direct dialog with it. Furthermore, Géricault’s interest in historical painting and Witkin’s interest in the aesthetics of Victorian photography reveal a wish to return to artistical conventions of the past and subvert them in order to criticize the reality of their present time. The analysis will be done through the representation of the corpse, which becomes a privileged element in which to study these contiguities: firstly, how it is executed by different artists in different art media, and secondly, how the corpse can be an expressive element in criticizing the political regimes of both historical contexts under analysis. In this crossing of aesthetic and political issues, it becomes useful to understand the concept of Necropolitics, developed by Achille Mbembe (2011), following Agamben (1995) and Foucault (1976), particularly regarding the theorization of death as an instrument of power and sovereignty, since both Géricault and Witkin explore realities in which death and power are intimately connected. In this way, by analyzing and opposing the two works, I intend to study the way in which the representation of the corpse can be a vehicle for political discourse through art.