Spacial Awareness



West Side Highway

Dane Shitagi photography ( Ballerina Project)

A dancers interation with a space.

At first, I focused on the idea of movement within a space, particularly by ballet dancers body movement and how it changes the space.

While researching, I had read an interesting article called 'Measuring Space' by Maribruna Fabrizi and Fosco Lucarelli. It was basically about the close relation between dance and architecture. What I found interesting is how we commonly think and look at architecture for it's shape and how it impacts our space but we don't necessarily consider the shapes the human form create within a space, especially a dancer's.  

'Is space static or it it produced by movement?'

I found this question intriguing and therefore, I wanted to investigate it further by producing a video of myself dancing (roughly!) within an open space and challenging the idea of spatial awareness. I did a number of videos, keeping to the same dance routine but changing the space.

I concluded that as a dancer, the space around you
manipulates the way you move. You fold your body forward and down when their is a low ceiling and choregraphy(imagination behind the action) has to be changed to suit the space.

When speaking to the tutors, my work and research was starting to portray more of a focus on movement and not on the space. So from that, I tried to manipulate the way the videos or images of the dancer and space are viewed. It did in some way show more focus on shape within the space.But it is something I am currently still working on....

A video called Ballerina project 'Winter Repose' during a photoshoot by Dane Shitagi. http://vimeo.com/22530604.

Manipulating the viewing of 'West Side Highway'

Dane Shitagi photography ( Ballerina Project)