Barnum & Bailey: By The Hair Of Their Heads
Maker
The Strobridge Lithographing Company
(American, 1867 – 1960)
Date1916
MediumInk on paper
Dimensions1 sheet (V): 40 x 30 in. (101.6 x 76.2 cm)
ClassificationPosters
Credit LineTibbals Circus Collection
Object numberht2000361
Potential nativist fear of the unknown was offset by the curious stunt of Asian men hanging by their hair. At a time when the United States was closed to Chinese immigration, circuses made an effort to bring troupes from China, Japan, and India to satisfy public curiosity about these cultures. Performers in Asian feature acts were rarely given individual billing. Colonial stereotypes were overtly emphasized in this poster by the close-up of the Chinese performers drinking their tea. The radical shift in scale from the frame-filling figures to the small-scale performers on the ground conveys the tremendous height of the act.
On View
Not on view
