”Presence and sustainability within the performing arts” by Camilla Damkjaer and Johanna Garpe
The performing arts build on artistic forms that focus and retain the audience’s attention in order to let the audience live through an experience. In a digital world and an entertainment economy, which imply more pressure on our consciousness, the conditions for this change. In the meeting point between meditative practices and the performing arts, this project intends to develop methods for a more sustainable approach to attention within the performing arts.
Purpose and research questions
The purpose of the project is develop methods for a more sustainable approach to attention within the performing arts. Starting from chosen meditative practices, the project investigates how support practices can create more awareness about and better conditions for focus and presence within the profession. Additionally, the project intends to create a deepened dialogue about artistic choices and how they relate to human’s attention, for instance through the use of tempo and time, the relation between different levels of information, and the relation between performers and the audience.
The project starts from the following research questions:
- In which way can the use of meditative practices contribute to a more sustainable approach to attention within the performing arts and artistic education?
- How can we create more awareness about how different artistic choices within the performing arts relate to performers’ and audiences’ attention?
Research implementation and anticipated impact
The project is practice based, assuming that knowledge within artistic research is developed in and through practical investigations combined with critical reflection, conceptual clarification and contextualisation.
The project includes among other things a series of workshops focusing on the use of meditative practices (for instance yoga, sitting meditation, forest bathing, rave etc.) within the performing arts and artistic education.
Collaboration
The project is built on dialogue within Stockholm university of the arts and the research activities will be open for participation.
Schedule
The project will be conducted during the period July 2021-June 2023.
