December 15, 2014

RISD museum highlights the allure of the circus

RISD museum celebrates the circus.

From The January-February 2015 Issue

James Tissot’s painting, <i>Ladies of the Chariots</i> — James Tissot’s painting, *Ladies of the Chariots* | Courtesy of RISD Museum

Circus: Prints, Drawings, and Photographs illustrates the charms and thrills of this traveling entertainment during its heyday in Europe and America. The first modern circus appeared in London in 1768; another would debut in Newport, Rhode Island. Each offered equestrian feats. As the phenomenon grew, especially between 1850 and 1950, other animals, acrobats, clowns, and “freaks” were added. At RISD, James Tissot’s Ladies of the Chariots (circa 1883-85, above), renders circus mythology, while The Nightmare of the White Elephant (1947), by Henri Matisse, captures the dynamism of the center ring.

Published in the January-February 2015 print issue under the headline “Circus Art,” in the Harvard Squared section.

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