Dance series : transforming body shapes and shadow into sculpture : case studies within the context of the performing arts

Abstract

The aim of this thesis is to unify two types of arts which I studied during these past years at the University; the Performing Art and the Visual Art, through dance and sculpture art. The idea of this project is to capture that unique movement of a dancer into a sculpture, as if it is his shadow. As a dance style for this project I used Modern Dance style category, with moves which incorporates couples. For sculpture, Minimalism idea was employed. The difference between performing art and visual art is that in visual art the artist uses paint on canvas or other different material which could be done in 2D or 3D. On the other hand in the performing art, artists use their body and voices, and performed in front of an audience. Augusto Boal (1931-2009) who was a Brazilian theatre director describes this uniqueness by saying that it is impossible that any show be repeated more than once exactly the same even if it is produced by the same artists1. This theory of Boal applies perfectly to Visual Art too. The aim of this investigation will clearly confirm what Augusto Boal stated, that every artistic move is truly unique and cannot be replicated. The lines and shapes projected on the sculpture will exhibit that uniqueness of that particular movement. No importance will be given to the anatomy of the figure but the curves and lines produced by the dancer‟s moves which will be clearly defined by the work of arts produced. Stone will be used as a medium for this series of sculptures named Dance series. The front and back surfaces of the sculptures will be finished in texture because shadows don‟t glow, but the perimeters of sculpture will be polished to increase the effect of the shadow.