There is very little known about Benga and the art historian, James Smalls is currently doing research on Benga. Benga became a model for artistic expression like James Richmond Barthé's famous sculpture, pictures by Carl van Vechten, postcards by George Platt Lynes, paintings by James Porter and Pavel Tchelitchew.
He had a relationship with anthropologist Geoffrey Gorer. Benga and Gorer travelled together to Africa, and Gorer wrote Africa Dances. Originally published in 1935, Africa Dances takes the reader on an odyssey across West Africa, in the company of one of the great black ballet stars of 1930s Paris (Feral Benga). It's a devastating critique of colonial rule, which is shown to be destroying African society while Christian missionaries undermine indigenous morality. The book captures the rich physical and psychological detail of village life-from food and architecture to witch doctors, dance, and magic.
Geoffrey Gorer is an English anthropologist and author, noted for his application of psychoanalytic techniques to anthropology. He had a relationship with Senegalese dancer Feral Benga. Benga and Gorer travelled together to Africa, and Gorer wrote Africa Dances. Benga became a model James Richmond Barthé's famous sculpture, pictures by Carl van Vechten, postcards by George Platt Lynes, paintings by James Porter and Pavel Tchelitchew. Benga died in 1957 and Gorer went back to the UK.
by George Platt Lynes
Feral Benga by Carl Van Vechten, 1937
by George Platt Lynes
by George Platt Lynes
by Carl Van Vechten
by Carl Van Vechten
by Pavel Tchelitchew, 1938
He was educated at Charterhouse and at Jesus College, Cambridge. During the 1930s he wrote unpublished fiction and drama. His first book was The Revolutionary Ideas of the Marquis de Sade (1934, revised 1953, 1964). He then published an account of a journey in Africa, Africa Dances (1935, new edns. 1945 : Penguin, 1949, 1962), and another cultural study Bali and Angkor, or, Looking at Life and Death (1936). Hot Strip Tease appeared in 1937 and Himalayan Village in 1938.
Feral Benga by George Platt Lynes, 1934
His admiration for George Orwell's novel Burmese Days led him to contact Orwell in 1935. They remained good friends until Orwell's death in 1950.
From 1939 he lived and worked in the United States. He wrote The Americans (1948), The People of Great Russia: A Psychological Study (1949, new edn. 1962), and worked with various official and semi-official organizations on studies in Soviet and other cultures. Modern types (1955) was his last book written in America.
From 1957 he again worked in England. Exploring English Character, based on a large survey he designed, appeared in 1955. Death, Grief, and Mourning in Contemporary Britain appeared in 1965. The Danger of Equality and other essays (1966) collected some recent papers. Sex and Marriage in England Today appeared in 1971.
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geoffrey_Gorer
Paperback: 760 pages
Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform; 1 edition (July 1, 2014)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1500563323
ISBN-13: 978-1500563325
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