Background: Dancer Olivia Millard & visual artist (VA) Katie Lee utilise improvisation in their respective practice. Following the work of dancers & VAs associated with the Judson Church (1960-1980) Lee & Millard’s work considers the role improvisation plays in such hybrid artworks. As an embodied practice improvisation holds open the space between the known & the unknown (Foster, 2003) unfolding in the presence of an observing public. Its creators make decisions in the present while drawing on ‘knowns’ of the situation. In this work the corporeal knowing of the performers was placed in relation to material objects enabling the exploration & creation of a multi-disciplinary artwork in real time.
Contribution: Lee & Millard produced a public outcome in a premier performance venue, Dancehouse. The work was deliberately positioned in a dance context, delivering an improvised performance that did not adhere to one set of disciplinary conventions. Following Bishop (2009) Lee & Millard’s new work further questioned the role audience & context play in understanding hybrid performance practice & questioning if discipline specific knowledge held by audiences influence the perception of the work.
Significance: This research is significant to those working at the intersection of dance & VA. By coming together to investigate the role of improvisation in live performance, Lee & Millard extend existing research in both disciplines. Recent museum shows chronicle this movement towards blurred contexts in which dance & VA practice is performed, however examples are often located in museums. This research shares concerns regarding improvisation & live practice but maintains the context of dance. The emphasis is on methodologies & processes undertaken in collaboration & improvisation, challenging the viewing public to re-think how they perceive performance in a traditional venue while introducing rogue elements of objects to a live arts practice further probing disciplinary concerns.
Publication classification
JL4 Live Performance of Creative Works – Other
Scale
NTRO Minor
Extent
30 minute performance at premiere performance space Danchouse. Documentary footage in the form of one video and two images.