The subjectivity of BEAUTY.
Picasso Is A Perfect Example To Start This Theme Around The Notion Of Beauty.
A Notion Especially Actual In The World In Which I Work : Ballet.
Ballet being a visual-esthetic art, it's supposed to be pleasant for the eyes. Ballerinas are chosen at a young age not only for their physical ability but also for their proportionate appearance and pretty features.
When I started talking with people outside the ballet world, I understood that the criteria for beauty are really subjective.
Shortly, For Us, A Woman (Ballerina) Is Beautiful When She Has Nice Proportion (Longer Legs, Short Torso, This Obviously Sounds Already Weird...), Long Neck And Arms, Small Head, Nice Feet (Which Means With Arch), Defined Features Of The Face, And Of Course If She Is Skinny...
To be skinny (thin) is taboo, not only in ballet but also in fashion and, in general, especially in a world that promotes more and more body positivity.
Everyone is born with a different body, which means the idea of beauty for each is unique.
As We Can See With Picasso's Notion of Proportions, Symmetry Was Not For Him A Definition Of Beauty.
galina Sergeyevna Mezentseva.
At the same time, the dancer's vision of beauty is so specific that our parameters may not be as pleasant to an outsider's eyes (and maybe even to the audience).
We, ballet dancers, spend our lives in front of a mirror, sculpting our bodies and striving to reach perfect harmony and beauty in our body lines.
I think harmony of lines and shapes is our main criteria for beauty. The more the movement becomes harmonious, the more precise and pure the lines, the more beautiful and perfect it becomes.
If we observe the laws of harmony in nature, we notice that harmony is the image of balance, and what is harmonious to the eyes becomes similar to the notion of perfection.
Around us, there is harmony and disharmony, because one couldn’t exist without the other. It’s our daily choices that build us and create the direction in which we will tend to grow. By consequence, exterior beauty starts with inner transformation.
Ballet can be simply physical (repetition of movements), but since it is dance, which is part of ancient rituals, it can be much more than a movement.
Like a ritual, it’s a process of transformation.
Transformation, then, happens through the dance, which means, depending on your state of mind, you will transform not only inside but also outside while dancing.
For me, ballet is like a school of life or religion : you train daily, clean your body and mind, and learn to deal with your fears or limited beliefs (“sins”) in order to become closer to your inner creator, which is being closer to your divine self. On the body, it will manifest as a purity of lines and lightness.
There is the idea of elevation and purity everywhere in ballet, our beauty is a very specific manifestation of inner research and aspiration.
Maybe many people are not aware of this, and maybe they perceive it differently. Since ballet is usually a passion and, by extension, a life path, those who find happiness through it are naturally in alignment with their inner selves.
And let’s remember that our body is the image of our inner state, which means if you are happy and in harmony between thoughts and action, then your body will reflect and shine this inner beauty. the same, on the contrary.
The notion of beauty is extremely subjective and complex. I share with you today my vision as a ballet dancer, which is personal and not the truth. Ideal and reality are often far from each other, but in any reality, there exists an ideal, and in any ideal, there is a form of realness.
