Circus Arts

Artwork by Beth Clary Schwier.

Photo courtesy of the artist

Image of toss jugglers from the ancient Beni Hasan tomb of an unknown Egyptian prince (c. 1994–1781 BCE).

Photo by Ernst Wallis et al. (own scan), via Wikimedia Commons

Aerial act at Vidbel's Olde Tyme Circus, 1994.

Photo by Dawn Rogala, courtesy of Smithsonian's National Museum of American History

The Two Hemispheres bandwagon was built to highlight the 1903 Barnum & Bailey Circus parade in celebration of the show’s triumphal return to the United States from a five-year European tour.

Photo courtesy of Don Oswalt

Don Oswalt works on a scale-model version of the Two Hemispheres.

Photo courtesy of Don Oswalt

While circus arts conjure the physicality of aerials, acrobatics, equilibristics, object manipulation, and clowning, circus culture has also inspired painting, sculpture, photography, wood carving, and model-building. In fact, much of what we know about the origins of various circus arts have come through examination of artifacts including wall paintings inside ancient Egyptian tombs, sculptures from Minoan civilization, and even carvings at the abandoned temple complexes of Angkor in Cambodia.

Painting

Three contemporary painters—Robert Burridge from California, Karen E. Gersch from New York, and Beth Clary Schwier from Indiana—continue to find inspiration for their art in the circus. At the 2017 Folklife Festival, they can be seen in action at various venues, and their artwork also will be available for sale at the Festival Marketplace in the Arts and Industries Building.

Photography

Circus photographers Dawn Rogala from Washington, D.C., and Jim Cole from Florida will offer periodic walkabouts around the Festival to share tips about setting up and catching that perfect circus picture.

Model-Building

The art of circus-related woodcarving and model-building can be examined by visiting the Two Hemispheres circus wagon (one of the largest ever built) as well as the detailed artistry of circus model builder Don Oswalt from Florida, whose work-in-progress one-twelfth-scale model of the Two Hemispheres can be seen alongside the original, near the Smithsonian Metro station on the National Mall.