Photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson captured this scene depicting preparations for the Baris Dance by two young female dancers in the town of Ubud, Indonesia in 1949.
It’s a compelling image, and a work of art in it’s own right. In looking beyond the descriptive/narrative/travelogue pleasantries of the image, some creative tensions emerge.
The two subjects display signs of distress. Be it from the Cartier-Bresson’s intrusion into the dancers’ private lives in a Heisenbergian sense, or perhaps a photographer-subject/male-female dynamic or it may simply be performance anxiety, and/or stage fright. The elevated viewing angle contributes to a sense of infantilization and together with the not-fully-dressed aspect of the dancers plus allusions to passive-aggressive affect, result in an undercurrent of tension and averted eyes and, which in turn draws our gaze.
The Baris Dance is described as a solo warrior dance, and so Cartier-Bresson probably erred in his description – the 2 dancers look too old to be in the Legong, so the photographer may well have witnessed the Kris or the Ramayana Balinese dances.
The Eye of the Century – Cartier-Bresson – 24 Hour Museum
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I was privileged to see a few Balinese dance performances in college because my school had a special relationship with an Indonesian school. Definitely try to catch one if you get the chance; it’s a beautiful and moving experience.
I wouldn’t blame these two subjects for having some stage fright at that moment.