Water Study is an elegant piece of art created in 1928 by the fascinating choreographer Doris Humphrey. This was a controversial dance as this was a point in history where women were not aloud to wear trousers or it was a very rare occurrence to see a woman wearing them. The dancers within this piece wear nude or grey unitard which makes them look naked with no light shone on them which created a stir in society. The opening section for this piece starts with a dimly lit stage only lit from three spotlights above representing the moonlight reflecting onto the water's surface. All 14 dancers are placed in a confined ball on the floor sat staggered across the stage facing audience stage left. The dancers then perform a series of seven cannons …show more content…
flowing from one side to the other starting with audience stage left. The dancers begin by slowly lifting their torsos upwards keeping their heads down with their arms lifted and curved over their head. This cannon carries on another four times slightly enlarging each time; however on the fifth cannon starting at audience stage right the dancers suddenly rise up onto their knees performing an upper back curve including a torso twist with their arms curved reaching in opposite directions. This is performed in cannon of four groups rather than singular cannon. But instead of the fourth group copying, they lie face down on the floor bringing their arms to fifth then slowly bringing them round the sides of their body. The slower cannon represents soft calm waves as they are just rippling onto the sandy shores of a tropical island; whereas the larger, faster cannon reminds me of a hard, choppy sea and the last group showing the waves crashing onto the beach indicating a weather change. Throughout each section, the lighting changes from three dimly lit spotlights to the whole stage being fully lit. This aids the piece of giving the effect of night changing to day then changing back to night at the end of the piece. The lighting helps to give more power into the performance as in the second section the dancers run from either side of the stage to the middle performing a jump with their arms placed in fifth position and legs spread in opposite directions then running back to their two separate groups with their arms at a right angle, one facing upwards, one downwards.
These running patterns are continued back and forth which helps to show angry, crashing waves against a rock face then falling back into the mad crashing waves. I believe this piece is successful as it helps to convey the imagery and subject matter of water to all audiences. This shows that everyone of any audience could understand and enjoy the piece of art on stage. Water Study is an elegant piece that allows audiences to relax and watch the fluidity of water without seeing it as dancers.It was made at a time where dance was at a controversial turning point from classical to modern which produced audience that had a negative due to the sudden change it had on society. This was also a time in history where women were getting more power as they started working rather than being housewives and wearing trousers, mainly for leisure which made women more in charge. Water Study helped to give women a symbol of empowerment throughout society; even if it was not recognised straight away, women seemed higher in society than they ever had
before. Witness was created by Company Chameleon; a company established in 2007. It is an amazing personal story about Kevin Edward Turner and his personal struggle when he was diagnosed with bipolar. The title ‘Witness’ shows through his mental illness, his friends and family watching Turner deteriorate. The piece is made up of six dancers; three male and three female who all portrayed different roles throughout such as Kevin’s friends, family or voices in his head except for Kevin as he played himself. Witness begins with two male dancers center stage, one stood in front of the other only making one dancer visible which is Kevin. The dancer behind manipulates Kevin portraying that Kevin had no control over his body from the start of the piece. Another section a trio of male dancers is present on stage all wearing checkered shirts. Kevin is wearing a dull grey colour, Taylor is wearing a red shirt where as Theo is wearing a deep green shirt. Theo and Taylor are aiding to represent the extremes bipolar as one is knocking him down and the other is bringing him up. Witness is a beautiful emotional rollercoaster that helps to spread the awareness of mental health. Inner Tera is a creative masterpiece formed through the use research in countries such as Slovenia, Prague and the Czech Republic.“A thought-provoking piece full of subtle imagery that sends your mind off on a consideration of the themes at play”. (Peter Jacobs, The Public Reviews, on work in progress performance April 22, 2016 as part of TURN 2016.) This research explored people’s lives who lived in these countries such as border volunteers, asylum seekers and immigrant workers. These stories helped contribute to the theme of “ethnicity vs citizenship vs identity” (Bridget Fiske). Throughout this mystical duet both dancers stand tall opposite each other a foot width apart before quickly grabbing each other by the forearms and ferociously shaking each other whilst slowly turning in a circle. This shaking starts through the upper body then takes control over the whole body, the dancers pulling each other back and forwards; attempting to hold on to hope and wanting a need for compassion. This shaking produces both dancers to start breathing heavily whilst shaking each other, evoking the feelings of sadness or risk of loss; battling both worldly and inner conflicts. This can also be seen whilst the piece is ending where the male dancer rolls sharply across the female dancer falling to the ground. This results in the male dancer shaking and crying on the floor showing how chaos and conflict affect people's emotions. Inner Tera is a worldly piece that shows conflict and suffering of countries at war.
Learning about Dance: Dance as an Art Form and Entertainment provides visions into the many features of dance and inspires scholars to keep an open mind and think critically about the stimulating, bold, ever-changing and active world of dance. Learning about Dance is particularly useful for those who do not have a wide and diverse dance contextual, such as students in a preliminary level or survey dance course. This book consists of twelve chapters. Chapter one dance as an art form focuses on the basic structures of dance. Dance is displayed through the human body, it has the control to communicate and induce reactions. Dance can be found in many different places, it enables the participants and seekers to touch and knowledge the joy of movement. Dance is discovered as being one of the oldest art forms worldwide. Dance existed in early cultures was recognized in a sequence of rock paintings portrayed dance. Since this discovery of rock paintings, several other forms of art have been found that depict dance. People used rituals in order to worship the gods and believed that the rituals held magical and spiritual powers. During the ancient period civilizations sentient decisions began to be made with regard to dance. Other periods that had an impact on dance were the medieval period, the renaissance period, and the contemporary period. Chapter two the choreographer, the choreographer is a person who comes up with the movements created into a dance routine. The choreographer expresses themselves through choreography because this is their way of communicating with the audience. In order to be a choreographer you must have a passion for dance. Each choreographer has their own approaches and ways of making up a routine. Choreographers ...
“The Dancer’s gift” is a love story between a young man and woman, Marcel and Samantha. But this novel was written not only to call feelings about love and passion; the main goal was to introduce students to sociological concepts. Overall, the book includes more than 180 sociological terms that flow with the story and closely connected to happening events. Marcel, a black man, arrives from Martinique (an island in the Caribbean Sea), and Samantha, a rich American girl, meet each other in college and fall in love. Both of them face obstacles in their lives: Marcel was grown up in a poor extended but a friendly family, while Samantha was a daughter of rich but divorced parents. Marcel comes to the U.S. to become a professional dancer, while Sam decided to become an attorney at law just like her father. Being lovers they decide to spend their Christmas holidays together and go to New York. Next holidays they go to Marcel’s homeland, Martinique, where they realize that there lives a woman who is pregnant by him. At that time all dreams of Sam just collapse due to this bitter disappointment, which becomes one of the reasons why they break up. Throughout the story, they both meet with numerous social issues such as education, marriage, gender issue, racism, deviance, divorce, religion, race and ethnicity. In this essay, the three main reasons why this novel is an effective tool for learning sociological concepts will be discussed.
It was a great time of despair for the Native American people as the defeat of their nations by the ever westward expanding United States and subsequent placement onto reservations disrupted their culture and way of life as it had existed for hundreds of years. The decade leading up to 1890, which was a main focal point in the history of Native Americans, saw the passing of the 1887 Dawes Severalty Act which called for the breaking up of reservations and offering the Indians an opportunity to become citizens and giving them an allotment of land to farm or graze livestock on (Murrin 628). This breaking up of the different tribes’ social structure was just one of the many causes which led to the spiritual movement known as the Ghost Dance (or Lakota Ghost Dance) that swept across what remained of the Native American people in their various reservations. Other reasons for the Indian’s dysphoria at this time in their history included: lack of hunting, decease of the buffalo, forced abandonment of their religion, nearly forced conversion to Christianity, westernization, and having to farm for the very first time.
Water is symbolic of the life cycle as the continuous, repetitive movement is symbolic of the Buddhist view of samsara. Within Buddhism, samsara is defined as the continual repetitive cycle of birth and death that arises from one grasping and fixating one’s self and experiences. Specifically, samara refers to the process of cycling through one rebirth after another within the realms of existence. The uninterrupted cycle of death and rebirth without a choice is called ‘cyclic existence’ ("Buddhism Beliefs |About Buddhism”). In lê thi diem thúy’s The Gangster We Are All Looking For, water permeates through the life cycle concerning life, death, and the dual-meaning of resurrection representing both rebirth and the manifestation of ghostly
Eiseley’s essay on water is from a reflective stance, connecting past, present, and future by water. He links his own magical experiences to water, by telling of when “…I lay back in the floating position that left my face to the sky, and shoved off” (Eiseley 139) he sets his mind adrift, and “… this sort of curious absorption by water¬¬—the extension of shape by osmosis…” (Eiseley 137) he becomes an embodiment of water. He goes on to articulate his interpretation of being one with nature, geology, history, and archeology, via water. All his reveries are brought about by a view of a stagnant pool on a roof. He not only feels connected to life through water, but he lets us glimpse that water is able to dredge up his past, and stir speculations of his future. He speaks of our current evolutional phase as a waypoint on the path to the future, he writes “…I have seen myself passing by—...
Before the Lindy-Hop became popular and long before tap dance was established in the United States, Black Bottom dance was popular among both Blacks and Whites in Harlem, New York. The dance craze, appropriated from the blacks in Harlem’s nightclubs, became a big rage when brought to the white community and put on stage. Black Bottom dance, also known as “Swanee Bottom” was an popular dance among lower class African Americans in the early 1900s. Beloved to be introduced by Alberta Hunter, a popular blues singer, Black Bottom was a dance that emerged from African American culture. Although Black Bottom is not a family recognizable dance today, the popularity of the dance at this time caused a great ripple in the dances that came later on down the line.
Spending time looking at art is a way of trying to get into an artists’ mind and understand what he is trying to tell you through his work. The feeling is rewarding in two distinctive ways; one notices the differences in the style of painting and the common features that dominate the art world. When comparing the two paintings, The Kneeling Woman by Fernand Leger and Two Women on a Wharf by Willem de Kooning, one can see the similarities and differences in the subjects of the paintings, the use of colors, and the layout
Water Imagery in the Works of Eudora Welty, Teresa de la Parra, Kate Chopin, and María Luisa Bombal
Katherine Dunham was an important figure in pushing for equality among all races. She became remembered through her unique twist she put on her ballet movements. Instead of pursuing traditional ballet, she choreographed ballets that incorporated African-American movements. Because of this, she has always been referred to as one of the “modern dance pioneers” (Cass 303). Even through struggles, she continued to strive to focus more on the dance traditions of other cultures and slowly help work towards the end of oppression towards particular races.
Jazz dance today is presented in many different forms. Jazz history and famous jazz dancers and choreographers have helped influenced what we know today, as jazz dance. It is incorporated in an assortment of styles including, hip hop and Broadway, Jazz dance today has its own movement, while there trendy modern types of jazz, traditional jazz never goes out of style. Over the years, jazz dance has become popular in the media and can be found in music videos, television, movies, and commercials. Jazz dance is always changing with the time periods, and can be found in social dance, musical theater, dance schools, and night clubs.
New Dance is described as a developing art form; this dance was articulated in the early 20th century. According to Chapter 8 in History of Dance book, “the new dance emerged as a response to the ballet that populated the variety shows and music halls, which had a rigid formula of steps and poses” (Kassing). The New Dance was a product of several strands that interlaced together dancers’ studies and backgrounds; these strands and others were woven together in a historical, political, and societal framework. For instance, one strand of New Dance consisted of the concepts, techniques, costumes, and stage settings from around the world. These strands influenced major dancers and choreographers, such as, Isadora Duncan, Loie Fuller, Ruth St. Denis, and Ted Shawn.
“Sex and the Social Dance” was a streaming video which examined the sexuality of social dances around the world. Regardless of geographical location or decade of popularity, dance conveyed social values. In particular, the sexuality was expressed through physical contact or lack thereof, in the gender roles of the dance, and in the purpose of the dance.
Of all the Impressionist artists, it is Pierre Auguste Renoir who is most interested in painting humans and studying the portrayal of human emotions. Renoir’s technique of broken brush strokes was combined with brash colours to portray the light and movement of the subject. He was greatly inspired to paint figures, particularly of women. Renoir succeeded in assembling several figures in one frame and his compositions were complex and demanded several revisions. In the 1880s Pierre-Auguste Renoir sought to move his art beyond Impressionism and to forge a link between modern art and the classical tradition of French painting from the Renaissance period. The result was this large-scale composition of nude bathers, which occupied much of his attention for three years. This work is unique in the history of modern painting for their representation of feminine grace, and they show Renoir’s ability to capture the soft and pearly texture of skin. Even though his figures in “The large Bathers” do not follow the impressionist style of broken brush strokes, the landscape in this painting seems looks like an impressionist landscape.
These works may be labeled objectifying also because a male painter painted them. Today, these works could be seen as empowering to women. The first painting gives off an emotional ride of one duplicated woman or two women. The second painting shows an emotional journey of prayer and relaxation of a woman sitting in the lotus position. The third painting could represent a strong and empowered women respecting herself and her body. Times have changed and so have views of women in society which have influenced a change in how people view nude women in
“Dance, the art of precise, expressive, and graceful human movement, traditionally, but not necessarily, performed in accord with musical accompaniment. Dancing developed as a natural expression of united feeling and action.”