Publish at October 14 2019 Updated October 22 2025
The art of the clown can be summed up in the idea of welcoming a protrusion that becomes wonderful and funny. The clown seeks out the flaw in himself that provokes laughter and triggers emotion. The figure of the clown has been developing in the West since at least the 17th century. We remember the masks of the commedia del arte. The white clown, the august and the counter-clown are now traditional circus figures. Clowns sell, and Ronald Mac Donald and the frightening clowns of horror films sell tomato sauce and blood in droves. But the clown is much more than a marketing icon.
The clown who most moved me was the one in the film"Under the Biggest Big Top in the World". This film recounts the life of a circus, including the story of a doctor accused of euthanizing his dying wife. He used the guise of a clown to evade the police. A soul who went against the grain of his time, making people laugh with his antics in order to exist.
This character alone illustrates the ambivalence of the clown's energy, between depth and tragic lightness. The power of the clown certainly lies in his ability to use his intimate weaknesses to make people laugh. This is why some clowns seek to explore their innermost nature. Access to this inner clown is a quest that appeals to more and more individuals in search of themselves. A number of organizations are interested in revealing this energy.
The power of the clown is such that many people want to explore this facet of their personality. Far from being the uneducated clown or the country bumpkin, the clown reveals the deep personality and singular sensibility of each individual. Whereas circus clowns were introduced to the game by family initiation or under the big top, now real training courses are organized to bring out the creative and poetic spark.
Theatrical techniques, particularly improvisation, are used to approach the spirit of the clown. Entering the stage, welcoming what comes, sharing the posture with the audience, exaggerating attitudes, gags, developing a plot, capturing the audience's attention, comic effects and pantomimes, exiting the stage are all phases that are experimented with and taught, or even initiated. A number of companies have ventured into the niche of personal development, offering seminars on the art of clowning:
Clown artists are the benchmark. Professional clowns have laid the foundations of this art form, either alone or as part of a troupe. They maintain a special atmosphere in circuses, and the show wouldn't be the same without their ability to improvise. Clown therapy" is a form of gentle psychoanalysis that contributes to personal development. It's a gentle form of psychoanalysis that contributes to personal development. The work of accepting one's frailties, but even more so of seeking out one's weaknesses, leads to greater self-assertion and commitment to action.
Beyond personal development, the art of clowning is flourishing in the corporate world. The corporate clown brings back to life the idea of the king's jester, capable of highlighting the blind spots in abstruse language or the lyrical flights of fancy of speakers who forget common sense. Corporate clowns bring humor and turn the nonsense of certain corporate statements into sweet poems that reveal the difficulties of communicating simply.
The best clowns are much sought-after at seminars, where they add an extra touch of intelligibility. The less skilful leave a bitter taste in the mouths of employees who are mocked but unable to retaliate, as it is socially difficult to fight laughter. In-company intervention can go as far as clownanalysis, which consists of "providing a critical, humorous analysis of the subjects dealt with in these debates".
Hospital clowns have their own special place. They are particularly appreciated by the elderly and children, who are able to smile and forget their health worries when they come into contact with their naked sensibilities. It also has virtues for nursing staff, whose working conditions can sometimes be quite difficult. Finally, the importance of this social role is recognized by a diploma in social intervention clowning. It's a real profession, identified in a set of guidelines.
Clowns are already producing magic and playing with the light of imagination on stage. A new digital art form is being invented. In its constant quest for innovation, cirque du soleil is increasingly integrating visual effects into its shows. Fireflies seem to rain down on the crowd, appearing on spectators' cell phones, or coordinated drones evolve in ballet in front of the crowd. Clowns combine gadgets and ever more powerful digital illusions with their acts. The digital circus seeks interactivity with the audience and offers new sensations.
"Being a clown" and using this practice is much more subtle than "being a clown". The training of clowns practising far beyond the circus teaches us about a world where intimacy is also a value. It's a world in which everyone, in their quest for self-fulfilment, is ready to explore their fragility and even their dark side. It's by going through the layers of our emotions and sensitivity that we find ourselves fully.
If some social network characters fall into the category of trolls, it is possible to observe promoters of poetry, gentleness and fragility who teach us another art of being in relationship. As far as I know, they don't yet have a dedicated school or training program. Perhaps some daring pioneers will dare to imagine ways of filling this gap?
Illustration: Sachin Bharti - Pexels
Sources
Wikipedia - Clown https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clown
The clown family https://www.lagrandefamilledesclowns.art/formations/quelles-formations-pour-etre-clown
Bataclown http://www.bataclown.com/
Samovar school https://www.lesamovar.net/accueil
Clown and digital art https://collectihihihif.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/Alpeus-Bellullus-Dossier-bd1.pdf
Under the world's biggest big top http://www.allocine.fr/film/fichefilm_gen_cfilm=2912.html
Thot cursus - The troll first amuses us, then wearies us https://cursus.edu/12583/le-troll-nous-amuse-au-debut-et-ensuite-il-nous-lasse
JDN Le journal du net - le cirque du soleil https://www.journaldunet.com/solutions/dsi/1189594-comment-le-cirque-du-soleil-se-renouvelle-grace-au-digital/
Ar Clown https://www.clown.asso.fr/stage-clown-therapie
Clown Z'hôpitaux https://www.clown-hopital.com/formation-professionnelle-clown-hopital/
Brim Balante - https://www.brimbalante.com/
Seznec, J. C., & Ouvrier-Buffet, E. (2014). Practicing ACT through clowning: Acceptance and commitment therapy. Dunod.
Fondation Dr Clown - https://fondationdrclown.ca/
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