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Scenography is the practice of crafting stage environments or atmospheres. In the contemporary English usage, scenography can be defined as the combination of technological and material stagecrafts to represent, enact, and produce a sense of place in performance. While inclusive of the techniques of
scenic design Scenic design, also known as stage design or set design, is the creation of scenery for theatrical productions including Play (theatre), plays and Musical theatre, musicals. The term can also be applied to film and television productions, wher ...
and set design, scenography is a holistic approach to the study and practice of all aspects of design in performance. It also includes the design of lighting,
sound In physics, sound is a vibration that propagates as an acoustic wave through a transmission medium such as a gas, liquid or solid. In human physiology and psychology, sound is the ''reception'' of such waves and their ''perception'' by the br ...
, and
costumes Costume is the distinctive style of clothing, dress and/or cosmetics, makeup of an individual or group that reflects class, gender, occupation, ethnicity, nationality, activity or epoch—in short, culture. The term also was traditionally used ...
.


Etymology and cultural interpretations

The term scenography is of Greek origin (''skēnē'', meaning 'stage or scene building'; ''grapho'', meaning 'to describe') originally detailed within Aristotle's ''
Poetics Poetics is the study or theory of poetry, specifically the study or theory of device, structure, form, type, and effect with regards to poetry, though usage of the term can also refer to literature broadly. Poetics is distinguished from hermeneu ...
'' as 'skenographia'. Nevertheless, within continental Europe, the term has been closely aligned with the professional practice of scénographie and is synonymous with the English-language term ' theatre design'. More recently, the term has been used in museography with regards to the curation of museum exhibits.


History

In what is not the first use of the term, Antonio Caimi, in 1862, describes a category of artists practising ''pittura scenica e l'architettura teatrale'', inspired by the artist Ferdinando Galli-Bibiena, who was also known as a painter of quadratura, or architectural painting (usually
trompe-l'œil ; ; ) is an artistic term for the highly realistic optical illusion of three-dimensional space and objects on a Two-dimensional space, two-dimensional surface. , which is most often associated with painting, tricks the viewer into perceiving p ...
depictions of architecture on ceilings or walls). Caimi also calls this ''Arte scenografica'', and notes that it required ingenious engineering to create movable sets, or create illusions of environments. The Galli da Bibiena family was a pedigree of scenographic artistry that emerged in late-seventeenth-century Bologna, but spread throughout northern Italy to Austria and Germany. Another large family known for theatrical scenography were members of the Quaglio surname. Caimi goes on to mention practitioners of scenography in the second half of the 18th century and early 19th century in Lombardy, including: Bernardino Galliari, Gaspare Galliari, Pasquale Canna, Pietro Gonzaga, Paolo Landriani, Giovanni Perego, Alessandro Sanquirico, Bomenico Menozzi,
Carlo Fontana Carlo Fontana (1634/1638–1714) was an Italian people, Italian"Carlo Fontana."
''Encyclopæ ...
, Baldassare Cavallotti, Carlo Ferrari, Filippo Peroni, Carlo Ferrario, Enrico Rovecchi, Angelo Moja, Luigi Vimercati, and the brothers Mofta of Modena, among others. A review of the history of Italian-influenced scenic painting, architecture, and design up to the nineteenth century, was provided by Landriani.


Usage

While also aligned with the professional practice of the
scenographer A scenographer or scenic designer, also production designer, is a person who develops the appearance of a stage design, a TV or movie set, a gaming environment, a trade fair exhibition design or a museum experience exhibition design. The term ori ...
, it is important to distinguish the individual elements that comprise the 'design' of a performance event (such as
light Light, visible light, or visible radiation is electromagnetic radiation that can be visual perception, perceived by the human eye. Visible light spans the visible spectrum and is usually defined as having wavelengths in the range of 400– ...
, environment,
costume Costume is the distinctive style of dress and/or makeup of an individual or group that reflects class, gender, occupation, ethnicity, nationality, activity or epoch—in short, culture. The term also was traditionally used to describe typica ...
, etc.) from the term 'scenography', which is an artistic perspective concerning the visual, experiential, and spatial composition of performance. Influenced by the work of Modernist pioneers Adolphe Appia and
Edward Gordon Craig Edward Henry Gordon CraigSome sources give "Henry Edward Gordon Craig". (born Edward Godwin; 16 January 1872 – 29 July 1966), sometimes known as Gordon Craig, was an English modernist theatre practitioner; he worked as an actor, director an ...
, scenography proposes that design practices within performance are considered an equal partner, alongside other elements such as literary texts and performance technique, within the construction and reception of meaning. The practice of scenography is thereby a holistic approach to the composition of performance and can be applied to the design or curation of events within, and outside of, the conventional theatre environment. Or, as Pamela Howard states in her book ''What is Scenography?'': :"Scenography is the seamless synthesis of space, text, research, art, actors, directors and spectators that contributes to an original creation." Joslin McKinney and Philip Butterworth expand upon this to suggest that: :"Scenography is not simply concerned with creating and presenting images to an audience; it is concerned with audience reception and engagement. It is a sensory as well as an intellectual experience, emotional as well as rational."


Scenographic theory

While there is no one theory of scenography, Rachel Hann has argued for a distinction between 'scenography' and 'scenographics'. Hann introduces this framework by plotting the usage of key terminologies: :"As part of this differentiation, I approach a scenographic trait as ''orientating'' and scenography as a ''crafting''. My intention is to map how these evidently related concepts apply to artistic and social scenarios beyond institutional conceptions of theatre. I attempt to dissuade the reader from understanding notions of scenographic as singular and monolithic. My adoption of scenographics stresses the inherent plurality and multiplicities that sustain a scenographic encounter. Consequently, scenographic traits result from a combination of orientating stimuli that exceed strict ontologies of empiricism and complicate the neat separation of theatrical crafts." Scenographics are a collection of place-orienting traits that are often explicit in theatre, yet are also present within other scenographic cultures such as
gardening Gardening is the process of growing plants for their vegetables, fruits, flowers, herbs, and appearances within a designated space. Gardens fulfill a wide assortment of purposes, notably the production of Aesthetics, aesthetically pleasing area ...
and visual merchandising. These traits draw attention to "orders of world" by employing methods that sculpt or irritate how distinct worlding orientations (whether that of materiality and texture, familiarity and proximity, as well as ideologies of nation and identity) sit together as part of a broader geography. Hann consolidates this position by arguing that to "speak of staging is to speak of how scenographics enact an 'othering' of place". Scenographics are "interventional acts of orientation that complicate, reveal or score processes of worlding". This approach positions scenography as a "crafting of place orientation" and a theatre-making strategy, alongside dramaturgy and choreography. The usage of place orientation as the loci for scenography seeks to capture an understanding that is inclusive of the physical as well as metaphysical relations that affect how individuals design and experience the assemblage of place. This could be the role of directed sound systems in cultivating a feeling of isolation; the usage of a tightly focused lantern to re-orientate the spatial dimensions of a place; the scent of an old well-worn desk; along with how costumes mould relations between bodies and stage environments. In practice, Hann argues that it is the interrelations between these distinct methods of scenography (costume, scenery, light, sound) that give rise to an act of scenography, where "scenography is neither exclusively visual nor spatial" Lastly, Hann proposes that scenographics are formative to all staged atmospheres by arguing that there "are no stages without scenographics". This is based on the argument that "all stages are also scenes" that challenges the "deterministic assumption that stages precede scenography". In this model, stages become manifest through the place-orienting traits of scenographics (rather than the other way around). The implications of this are that all theatre is scenographic - even if it has no defined objects or 'setting' - as all theatre is performed on a stage. Hann summarises this position by using the hybrid 'stage-scene' when discussing the tensions between the histories of these practices, particularly with reference to original Greek '' skene'' as a physical tent or hut that ultimately shaped current conceptualizations of '
the stage ''The Stage'' is a British weekly newspaper and website covering the entertainment industry and particularly theatre. Founded in 1880, ''The Stage'' contains news, reviews, opinion, features, and recruitment advertising, mainly directed at thos ...
'.


See also

*
Scenic design Scenic design, also known as stage design or set design, is the creation of scenery for theatrical productions including Play (theatre), plays and Musical theatre, musicals. The term can also be applied to film and television productions, wher ...
*
Set construction Set construction is the process undertaken by a construction manager to build full-scale scenery, as specified by a production designer or art director working in collaboration with the director of a production to create a set for a theatr ...
*
Theatrical scenery Theatrical scenery is that which is used as a setting for a theatrical production. Scenery may be just about anything, from a single chair to an elaborately re-created street, no matter how large or how small, whether the item was custom-made or ...
*
Costume Costume is the distinctive style of dress and/or makeup of an individual or group that reflects class, gender, occupation, ethnicity, nationality, activity or epoch—in short, culture. The term also was traditionally used to describe typica ...
* Video design * Lighting design *
Sound design Sound design is the art and practice of creating auditory elements of media. It involves specifying, acquiring and creating audio using production techniques and equipment or software. It is employed in a variety of disciplines including filmmaking ...
*
Dramaturgy Dramaturgy is the study of dramatic composition and the representation of the main elements of drama on the stage. The role of a dramaturg in the field of modern dramaturgy is to help realize the multifaceted world of the play for a production u ...
*
Choreography Choreography is the art of designing sequences of movements of physical bodies (or their depictions) in which Motion (physics), motion or Visual appearance, form or both are specified. ''Choreography'' may also refer to the design itself. A chor ...


References


Selected bibliography

* Aronson, A. (2005) ''Looking into the Abyss: Essays on Scenography'', Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press * Aronson, A. (2018) ''The History and Theory of Environmental Scenography'', (Revised 2nd edition) London: Bloomsbury Methuen * Aronson, A.(2018) ''The Routledge Companion to Scenography'', London: Routledge * Baugh, C. (2013) ''Theatre, Performance, and Technology: The Development and Transformation of Scenography'', (Revised 2nd edition) Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan * Beacham, R. C. (1994) ''Adolphe Appia: Artist and Visionary of the Modern Theatre'', Reading: Harwood Academic Publishers * Brockett, O. G., Mitchell, M. and Hardberger, L. (2010) ''Making the Scene: A History of Stage Design and Technology in Europe and the United States'', Austin (TX): University of Texas Press * Craig, E. G. (1911) ''Towards a New Theatre'', London: Heinemann. eprinted in 1962, London: Mercury Books* Hann, R. (2019) ''Beyond Scenography'', Oxon. and New York: Routledge * Hannah, D. and Harsløf, O. eds. (2008) ''Performance Design'', Nijalsgade, Denmark: Museum Tusculanum Press * Howard, P. (2002) ''What is Scenography?'', London: Routledge econd Edition 2009* McAuley, G. (1999) ''Space in Performance: Making Meaning in the Theatre'', Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press * McKinney, J. and Butterworth, P. (2009) ''The Cambridge Introduction to Scenography'', Cambridge: Cambridge University Press * McKinney, J. and Palmer, S. (2017) ''Scenography Expanded: An Introduction to Contemporary Performance Design'', London: Bloomsbury Methuen * Svoboda, J. and Burian, J. ed. (1993) ''The Secret of Theatrical Space'', New York: Applause Theatre Books


Journals


''Scene'', published by Intellect since 2012

Theatre and Performance Design, published by Routledge since 2015


External links


Prague Quadrennial of Performance Design and Space
- the largest scenography event in the world - presenting contemporary work in a variety of performance design disciplines and genres - costume, stage, light, sound design, and theatre architecture for dance, opera, drama, site specific, multi-media performances, and performance art, etc., Prague, CZ * - a four-yearly international, designer-based exhibition to showcase and celebrate the work of individual designers
Master's Degree in Urban Scenography in Barcelona

Scenography International Online Journal.

Palatine Directory
Design / Scenography
Scenography - The Theatre Design Website
Theatre Design / Scenography
Jaroslav Malina Biography

Master's Degree in Scenography at the University of Kansas

MA and PhD provision at University of Leeds, UK
{{Authority control Stagecraft