Choreographing an Archive of Relations: Singularities and the Shared Commons in Dance

Academic summary

Choreographing an Archive of Relations: Singularities and the Shared Commons in Dance explores choreographic methods and processes for utilising archives in dance. How can choreography exist as a singularity, as an object that renders visible historical dance archives, modalities of watching, and archives of tasks and situations? What if choreography is not about the invention of new material, but a process of composing, processing and making existing materials and relations visible?

The research has produced new choreographic works conceived as singularities while utilising existing material. I am intrigued by the agency that material can possess in shaping the work. An artistic creation is always a site of references and influences, and I consider naming those references does not diminish or undermine the artistic autonomy or integrity of the artwork. Instead, it can contribute to establishing a broader knowledge field in dance and choreography, challenging the historically fetishised idea of the original masterpiece of genius, wherein one cannot articulate, discuss, or trace its influences.

This research has developed along two axes. The first axis I identify is the intersubjectivity inherent in choreographic processes. More precisely, I investigate how to create a productive learning situation in my work where what we produce emerges between me, as a choreographer, and the performer/dancer/collaborator, and how the site, context, and situation serve as co-creative materials in the artist's work. The second axis in my research, intertextuality, reflects my interest in existing materials, found dance historical archives, found forms of compositions and modalities of watching, understanding and approaching these as a Shared Commons.