MAGIE NOUVELLE - Circostrada Network

years of enchantment
© CLÉMENT DEBAILLEUL
context that has led up to new magic.
of the Inquisition and formed the vocabulary of
modern magic. During the same period we find
the appearance of the terms medium, shaman,
spirit: these words allowed for the separation of
fake and “true” magic.
★ The first traces of magic, 3000 years
BCE, accentuate the close relations between illusion
and survival. The practices of mimicry that
allowed archaic societies of hunters and gatherers
to incite the gods to provide them with game (trapping
techniques, covered traps, leaves, caves with
trap doors...) were all precursors of a necessary form
of magic. By mimicking nature and exploiting the
limits of common perception, humans forged a
creative magic subject to the view of the other.
★ We find uses of magic as entertainment
in pharaonic Egypt. The Westcar
papyrus tells of the exploits of the magician Dedi,
who was at the service of the pharaoh Cheops,
who reigns at around 2550 BCE, suggesting the
rulers’ interest at the time in the development of
the magic arts. A juggler sculpted on a bas-relief
on the tomb of Beni-Hassan (around 2500 BCE)
suggests a link with subterfuge and manipulation,
important elements in the portrayal of the themes
of magic.
➜
The danser
Fatou Traoré, in
“Vibrations”,
by Cie 14:20.
dossier from stradda #16 / page 3