Ecstasy 1916

Editor: Arthur Bowen Davies' etching, "Ecstasy," created in 1916, presents three female figures in varying states of undress and what seems like expressive movement. It gives me a sense of hidden freedoms, or perhaps repressed desires bubbling to the surface. How do you interpret this work within its historical context? Curator: Considering the moment of its creation, on the cusp of the modern era, and just before the US entered WWI, I see Davies' "Ecstasy" as speaking to a broader cultural yearning for liberation and emotional intensity. These nude figures, rendered with an almost dreamlike ethereality thanks to the etching medium, recall classical ideals, but they're disrupted. Editor: Disrupted how? Curator: The symbolism is intentionally vague. There's a move away from strict, academic nudes. Davies, as a figure tied to the 1913 Armory Show, contributed to shifting art away from moralistic conventions towards subjective experiences and primal emotions. The figures exist in this strange in-between space: they are idealized nudes but somehow still possess an air of earthly sensuality that departs from academic tradition. Where do you see that tension reflected in its composition? Editor: I think it is apparent in their placement within the shadowy space - it’s like they’re trying to escape, and are being swallowed up all at once. The figures look stuck. The composition could indicate the repression of women. Curator: An insightful connection. Works like these were both pushing boundaries while simultaneously reflecting the continued struggle for self-expression against socio-cultural constraints. It is also hard to ignore that fact that while pushing these boundaries he was not representing reality and continuing the societal construct. Food for thought. Editor: Definitely given me something to ponder regarding how liberation, art, and constraints work together.