This improvisational response was a result of a creative task in week four of Rebecca Lazier’s course, Site, Off-Site, Site-Responsive Dance and Choreography.
Truncated version of the task instructions:
“Improvise at the site for 30 minutes, set a timer or use a specific duration of music.
You will repeat this process 4 times, each time cutting the time for improvising in half. As you go there may be experiences you want to cultivate, repeat, play with again, and you might start collecting these seeds of work and bring them to your next improvisation, they will change, they may vanish or reemerge, there might be new discoveries. 2nd iteration is 15 min; 3rd is 7.5 min; 4th is 3.25 min; 5th is 1.5 minutes.
Always alternate improvisation with writing/drawing/reflecting/recording.”
Prior to performing the task, we were prompted to read Lisa Nelson’s Before Your Eyes.
Below are the notes I wrote in my journal between each improvisation; some ideas made it into my videotaped improvisations, though most did not.
juxtapose lines
trace surfaces —————————————————— become sculpture
- pushing against site and lifting from below (why is this sculpture here?)
- knocking head back and falling off platform then sinking back into the sculpture with heavy concavity, falling off quick (significance of the amorphous blob?)
- slow tracing with acrobatic movement and taking it to the floor
- weaving through site; thread the needle
- pushing off jumping and leaning (intervene)
- forward roll through; roll to forward walkover (play)
- images of leaning against
- head circles
Photos taken by Jon Sweeney during a second round of improvisation
Text
Princeton University Art Museum’s Interpretation of Oval with Points
If you wish to submit an improvisational response of your own to this sculpture, leave a comment below or email yayala@princeton.edu!
