#chunky moves

[melbourneartandculturecritic]

Sensations of Art

I walked down the stairs that connected the sun lit modern gallery to the darker contemporary gallery in the Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium. My eyes had not yet completely adjusted and I found myself walking on something. I recall the sensations of walking on metal. Instinctually I stepped back to see what I had trod on. I then realised that I had walked onto a Carl Andre minimalist…

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[thiscuriouscity]

the body: between telematic and kinetic expression

Gideon Obarzaneks, an Australian choreographer, was the former director of Chunky Moves, a contemporary dance company based in Australia. This dance company set out using emerging technology that could visually integrate computer projections with the movement of the body.

I've admired Obarzanek's work for over a year; questioning how he's been able to integrate both physical real time effects and interactive emerging technology. Why haven't more directors utilized this marriage between automation and digital integration?

Even Obarzaneks himself tends to work on a swinging pendulum. Either his productions consist of manipulating the audiences sense of perspective and space with the use of stage design and sculpture, or his production relies almost entirely on video mapping. 

Take for example the beautiful video mapping in Glow and Mortal Engine. 

When Obarzanek met with the kinetic sculpture artist Reuben Margolin, they felt that there was similar information being discovered within their work. Considering the nature of the digital lines and mapping used in previous Chunky Moves performances and the number of strings and joints that Margolin used in his sculpture, they shared this wholly organic expression of the body extended in space. 

Isn't everything in nature like an extension of the self? 

This is a screen shot of their performance for "Connected." Full video here of the artists discussing their piece at PopTech. (btw PopTech is like a pecha kucha 20x20/tedtalk online symposium