I have fallen asleep during more Cunningham and Cunningham-inspired dance performances than I care to mention but I would be remiss to exclude him. I love that he connected with John Cage and Robert Rauschenberg but by far my favorite thinker in his circle was Joseph Campbell. Campbell made all the connections that Merces randomness seemed to purposely miss.
Graham & Noguchi
Collaborators Martha Graham and Isamu Noguchi understood the psychological space form could embody.
Blossfeldt Steel
Only a handful of artists have captured nature's power as succinctly as Karl Blossfeldt. The highly focused intensity of these photos hit you deep in the gut. He is able to extract the essence of a natural object without dominating it: quite the opposite, the artist disappears, and the awesomeness of nature humbles the viewer. A delicate flower takes on the steeliness of the machine age.
Ruth Duckworth
Twyla
Twyla Tharpe like Eric Hawkins was a reaction to the classical form and a transformative force in dance. She invited friction and discord into her work that was super exciting to watch. Plus she got to experiment with Baryshnikov!
The Body is a Clear Place
Modern master Eric Hawkins classic quote, "The body is a clear place." says it all. Pure abstraction grounded in one of the most difficult dance techniques. Dancer as shaman or conduit for expression.
Deco & Dance
The 1930's era of Buzby Berkeley movies were rife with chauvinism but also produced incredible psychedelic visions. My grandmother, the most liberal and independent woman I have ever met embodied these glamorous times. I am forever looking back at the 1930's for design inspiration and once in a while I slip on my grandmothers silk deco nightgown and float around my bedroom. Watch this beautiful movie clip!
Petrushka and Pots
As a budding ballerina I understood the incredible power of structure behind ballet form. The hours of practice to create effortless movement. Rehearsing placement and syncopation so every space on the stage was accounted for. The overall architecture of a piece was set so the form and content was left to come alive.
This is clay poetics.