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Dance, Performance and Art.

 

I came across an article one day that reported on a choreographer who passed away recently- Trisha Brown. As an avid dancer, I have never heard of her before nor have I seen her in the media. However, her works intrigued and attracted me, especially the one titled 'Man Walking Down the Side of a Building (1970)' This gravity-defying act was extremely familiar and similar to a scene in Step Up and even in action movies which feature a chase down buildings scene. Trisha developed this into a performance documentation that was performed at the Whitney Museum of American Art which features dancers performing on the wall, perpendicular to the ground. Watch this performance over here: https://vimeo.com/15495060

 

As I was watching the performance, I first noticed how perspectives play a big role in this artwork. Watching this on my laptop versus watching the performance from the floor of the museum would play out very different experiences. It was strangely therapeutic to see the performers walk across the wall, suspended and hanging with a hint of danger and defiance. This form of performance definitely raises attention and provocation through the good use of space in the museum. I enjoyed the fact that the performers are the artworks in this context and the display of their movements would make up the experience of a visitor. This form of art greatly resonates with me as I have a huge passion for dance and I truly believe that dance is an art form that can provoke and raise awareness of certain issues through the movement of bodies. With inspiration from Trisha's works, I think Random Blends can consider having dance performances as artworks that serve to entertain yet provoke.