Olga Desmond
Encyclopedia
Olga Desmond was a German dance
r and actress.
Olga Desmond studied drama and earned her living as a model for artists and painters in Berlin. In 1907 she joined a group of artists and appeared as Venus
during the group’s nine-month tour at the London Pavilion
where they put on “plastic representations.” In Berlin she co-founded the Association for Ideal Culture and gave shows called “living pictures” in which she posed after the manner of ancient classical works of art. These so-called “Evenings of Beauty” (Schönheitsabende) were prohibited on more than one occasion starting from 1908, because the actors usually posed nude or wearing only bodypaint.
The “heroine of living pictures,” Olga Desmond became one of the first to promote nudity
on the stage in St. Petersburg, Russia, when in the summer of 1908 the German dancer arrived there with her repertoire of performance. Olga Desmond’s Evenings of Beauty quickly became the subject of a great debate in the Russian media. At least one of the representatives of official “justice” wanted to haul Desmond into court for “seduction.”
Olga Desmond herself persistently defended her right to appear naked. “Call it daring or bold, or however you want to describe my appearance on the stage, but this requires art, and it (art) is my only deity, before whom I bow and for which I am prepared to make all possible sacrifices,” she told the Russian press. “I decided to break the centuries-old heavy chains, created by people themselves. When I go out on stage completely naked, I am not ashamed, I am not embarrassed, because I come out before the public just as I am, loving all that is beautiful and graceful. There was never a case when my appearance before the public evoked any cynical observations or dirty ideas.”
Asked whether a stage costume would interfere with her, Olga Desmond answered: “To be completely graceful in a costume or even in a tricot is unthinkable. And I decided to throw off this needless yoke.” Objecting to the claims that she excites “base instincts” of the public, the dancer said: “I purposely set a high admission charge for my shows so that the street would not get in, for it has little understanding of pure art, but so that people with broader demands for it would come, people who will look on me as a servitor of art.”
The authorities in St. Petersburg paid little attention to the explanations offered by the dancer from Berlin, and her first appearance in the imperial Russian capital was also her last: further shows were forbidden by the mayor. Many artists in the capital took the side of the authorities. For example, Konstantin Makovsky
sharply denounced what he called the “cult of the naked body,” saying that “beauty, like much else in life, must have its hidden secrets, that we don’t even have the right to expose.”
Olga Desmond was no less the subject of controversy in her own country. In 1909 her appearance in the Berlin Wintergarten
was the cause of such a scandal that it became a subject of discussion even in the Prussian State Assembly
. But “scandalous” also meant well-known, and as a result of her renown, there were cosmetic products that carried her name. She traveled through Germany on numerous tours until 1914, when she married a Hungarian large landowner, and went off with him to his estate.
From 1916 through 1919 she appeared in various films including Seifenblasen (Soap Bubbles), Maria's Sonntagsgewand (Maria’s Sunday clothes) and Mut zur Sünde (Courage for sin). In the latter film she played opposite the later well-known German actor Hans Albers
. In 1917 she separated from her husband and returned to the stage. Her first appearance took place on 15 April 1917 at the Theatre of the Royal University (Theater der Königlichen Hochschule) in Berlin. In the same year she appeared in a performance of Carmen in Cologne
. She presented dance evenings and other things in Warsaw
, Breslau (now Wrocław), and Kattowitz (now Katowice).
Thereafter, she made fewer public appearances and from 1922 devoted herself entirely to teaching. Among her best-known students was Herta Feist, who later became a member of the dance group of Rudolf von Laban.
After the First World War she married her second husband, Georg Piek, a Jewish businessman with a studio for stage equipment, decorations, and special fabrics. After 1933 Piek left Germany. Olga Desmond continued to manage the business.
After World War II, Desmond lived in the eastern part of Berlin. When the wall was built, she was unable to leave. In her late years, forgotten by the public, she worked as a cleaning woman. To make a living, she also sold vintage postcards and other memorabilia from her time as a renowned dancer. Olga Desmond died on 2 August 1964 in East Berlin.
Dance
Dance is an art form that generally refers to movement of the body, usually rhythmic and to music, used as a form of expression, social interaction or presented in a spiritual or performance setting....
r and actress.
Biography
Venus (mythology)
Venus is a Roman goddess principally associated with love, beauty, sex,sexual seduction and fertility, who played a key role in many Roman religious festivals and myths...
during the group’s nine-month tour at the London Pavilion
London Pavilion
The London Pavilion is a building located on the corner of Shaftesbury Avenue and Coventry Street on the north-east side of, and facing, Piccadilly Circus in London...
where they put on “plastic representations.” In Berlin she co-founded the Association for Ideal Culture and gave shows called “living pictures” in which she posed after the manner of ancient classical works of art. These so-called “Evenings of Beauty” (Schönheitsabende) were prohibited on more than one occasion starting from 1908, because the actors usually posed nude or wearing only bodypaint.
The “heroine of living pictures,” Olga Desmond became one of the first to promote nudity
Nudity
Nudity is the state of wearing no clothing. The wearing of clothing is exclusively a human characteristic. The amount of clothing worn depends on functional considerations and social considerations...
on the stage in St. Petersburg, Russia, when in the summer of 1908 the German dancer arrived there with her repertoire of performance. Olga Desmond’s Evenings of Beauty quickly became the subject of a great debate in the Russian media. At least one of the representatives of official “justice” wanted to haul Desmond into court for “seduction.”
Olga Desmond herself persistently defended her right to appear naked. “Call it daring or bold, or however you want to describe my appearance on the stage, but this requires art, and it (art) is my only deity, before whom I bow and for which I am prepared to make all possible sacrifices,” she told the Russian press. “I decided to break the centuries-old heavy chains, created by people themselves. When I go out on stage completely naked, I am not ashamed, I am not embarrassed, because I come out before the public just as I am, loving all that is beautiful and graceful. There was never a case when my appearance before the public evoked any cynical observations or dirty ideas.”
Asked whether a stage costume would interfere with her, Olga Desmond answered: “To be completely graceful in a costume or even in a tricot is unthinkable. And I decided to throw off this needless yoke.” Objecting to the claims that she excites “base instincts” of the public, the dancer said: “I purposely set a high admission charge for my shows so that the street would not get in, for it has little understanding of pure art, but so that people with broader demands for it would come, people who will look on me as a servitor of art.”
The authorities in St. Petersburg paid little attention to the explanations offered by the dancer from Berlin, and her first appearance in the imperial Russian capital was also her last: further shows were forbidden by the mayor. Many artists in the capital took the side of the authorities. For example, Konstantin Makovsky
Konstantin Makovsky
Konstantin Yegorovich Makovsky was an influential Russian painter, affiliated with the "Peredvizhniki ". Many of his historical paintings, such as The Russian Bride's Attire , showed an idealized view of Russian life of prior centuries...
sharply denounced what he called the “cult of the naked body,” saying that “beauty, like much else in life, must have its hidden secrets, that we don’t even have the right to expose.”
Olga Desmond was no less the subject of controversy in her own country. In 1909 her appearance in the Berlin Wintergarten
Berlin Wintergarten theatre
The Berlin Wintergarten theatre was a large variety theatre in Berlin that opened in approximately 1887 and was destroyed by bombs in June 1944. The name was eventually taken on by a theatre in Potsdamer Strasse in 1992....
was the cause of such a scandal that it became a subject of discussion even in the Prussian State Assembly
Preußischer Landtag
Preußischer Landtag or Prussian Landtag was the Landtag of the Kingdom of Prussia, which was implemented in 1849 after the dissolution of the Prussian National Assembly, building on the tradition of the Prussian estates that had existed from the 14th century in various forms and states in Teutonic...
. But “scandalous” also meant well-known, and as a result of her renown, there were cosmetic products that carried her name. She traveled through Germany on numerous tours until 1914, when she married a Hungarian large landowner, and went off with him to his estate.
From 1916 through 1919 she appeared in various films including Seifenblasen (Soap Bubbles), Maria's Sonntagsgewand (Maria’s Sunday clothes) and Mut zur Sünde (Courage for sin). In the latter film she played opposite the later well-known German actor Hans Albers
Hans Albers
Hans Philipp August Albers was a German actor and singer. He was the single biggest male movie star in Germany between 1930 and 1945 and one of the most popular German actors of the twentieth century.- Life and work :...
. In 1917 she separated from her husband and returned to the stage. Her first appearance took place on 15 April 1917 at the Theatre of the Royal University (Theater der Königlichen Hochschule) in Berlin. In the same year she appeared in a performance of Carmen in Cologne
Cologne
Cologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...
. She presented dance evenings and other things in Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
, Breslau (now Wrocław), and Kattowitz (now Katowice).
Thereafter, she made fewer public appearances and from 1922 devoted herself entirely to teaching. Among her best-known students was Herta Feist, who later became a member of the dance group of Rudolf von Laban.
After the First World War she married her second husband, Georg Piek, a Jewish businessman with a studio for stage equipment, decorations, and special fabrics. After 1933 Piek left Germany. Olga Desmond continued to manage the business.
After World War II, Desmond lived in the eastern part of Berlin. When the wall was built, she was unable to leave. In her late years, forgotten by the public, she worked as a cleaning woman. To make a living, she also sold vintage postcards and other memorabilia from her time as a renowned dancer. Olga Desmond died on 2 August 1964 in East Berlin.
Publication
- Desmond, Olga Rhythmographik. Tanznotenschrift als Grundlage zum Selbstudium des Tanzes Edited by Fritz Böhme, Leipzig, 1919
Sources
- German edition of Wikipedia
- Glezerov, Sergei “XX vek nachinalsya s obnazhenki” [“The 20th Century began with strippers”] in Komsomol’skaya Pravda, Sankt Peterburg: 10 January 2003.
- Karina, Lilian and Kant, Marion, Hitler's Dancers: German Modern Dance and the Third Reich (page 340 for details of Rhythmographik), Berghahn Books, Oxford and New York, 2003
Literature
- Ochaim, Brygida M. and Balk, Claudia Variéte-Tänzerinnen um 1900. Vom Sinnenrausch zur Tanzmoderne, Ausstellung des Deutschen Theatermuseums München 23.10.1998-17.1.1999., Stroemfeld, Frankfurt/M. 1998, ISBN 3-87877-745-0.