The Art of Marring a Face: Exhibiting Boxers in Georgian London.

  • Published In: Huntington Library Quarterly, 2024, v. 87, n. 2. P. 165 1 of 3

  • Database: Academic Search Ultimate 2 of 3

  • Authored By: Eaker, Adam 3 of 3

Abstract

Bare-knuckle boxing matches provided some of the most ambivalent experiences of spectatorship in late Georgian England. Brutally violent and banned by law, prizefights nonetheless enjoyed an ardent following. Artists attended bouts, reveling in the opportunity to study musclebound athletes who seemed to reincarnate classical perfection. Pugilists in turn borrowed the language of artistic display, terming their training grounds "academies" and their bouts "exhibitions." They also inspired a proliferation of images, ranging from grand painted portraits to popular prints that both celebrated the boxer's physique and documented his violent disfigurement. This essay takes seriously the boxing match's status as an exhibition to argue that it provided a critical site for visual encounters with bodies understood to be racially and socially other. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Additional Information

  • Source:Huntington Library Quarterly. 2024/06, Vol. 87, Issue 2, p165
  • Document Type:Article
  • Subject Area:Visual Arts
  • Publication Date:2024
  • ISSN:0018-7895
  • DOI:10.1353/hlq.2024.a964270
  • Accession Number:186587232
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