AUTOPOETIC 01: The deconstruction and reconstruction of the body in space with Nathalie Brilliant

Concept:

Random participants that showed up that evening were guided by my voice in exploring the body in space and time. I guided the participants through a series of exercises drawing from eastern practices such as butoh, yoga, Buddhism and meditation, and western practices such as Anna Halprin’s workshops and somatic experiencing. Ambient sound was played by sound artist Conrad Hack.

 

The participatory performance looked at analyzing:

How we can understand and reconnect to our body in new formats

What it means to be human

What stillness is 

What movement is

And what the space is that falls in-between

All these ideas were examined during this participatory performance workshop. The participatory performance closed with a short ritual honoring the new moon. 


Following the participatory performance workshop, I spoke about the exercises explored with the participants referencing aspects of somatic psychology, Buddhism, and mindfulness. The talk closed with an open discussion and conversation about each participant’s experience and thoughts.

**The overall experience guided participants into the magic of the moment, into the magic of the body, and reminded you that you have never experienced this before.**

AUTOPOETIC is a multidisciplinary performance series set to nourish the intersections between the different performing arts scenes in the Bay Area by creating a shared space for equal-curation across scenes and disciplines. Directed by curator/performance artist Chris Wood as part of the Pro Arts Studio Lab Curatorial Residency, each performance is collaboratively curated by Wood and the featured artist through open dialogues between the aforementioned and members of the Pro Arts community. It is a 5-part, monthly series taking place at Pro Arts starting in May of 2017.

Pro Arts’ Curatorial Residency program is funded in part from a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts