Pedestrian as Art Object
Flaneur, Pedestrian, Dancer. Where the lines cross and bend and blur create a dialogue and relationship that merits exploration. In our project, we examined pedestrian movement through the eyes of both choreographers and pedestrians alike. We began our project by asking what authentic urban movement is and how the urban spatial setup of NYC affects what is deemed the “natural” conduct of the human body. Are there movements that come naturally from the population's reaction to space and activity? Through fieldwork and studio research we explored how pedestrian urban movement can be translated and perhaps recontextualized in the studio space. We gathered reference materials by taking photos and videos of unknowing pedestrians throughout the city, namely in Tompkins square and on Subway lines like the L.
After collecting photos and videos, we generated a base phrase of pedestrian movement, pulling from our materials and avoiding any rupture of the integrity of their movement- complete replication was the goal. We collaged these moments together, even if they were lacking in logical flow within the context they existed. From this point, we aimed to make our phrase, for lack of a better term, more “dancey”, utilizing common compositional tools such as manipulation of speed, use of the upper body, and repetition to further develop our sequence.
When using your imagination to think about what pedestrian movement is, the mind automatically goes to walking, the most basic activity that brings people between points in space, but upon further evaluation, it was clear to see that the spectrum of what is deemed pedestrian stretches farther. We noticed patterns in our source material of pedestrian movement, as well as specificity in activity. This point also highlights how individuals maintain themselves while also bleeding into the amorphous collective of the city, being swallowed by the city itself and losing their unique qualities by performing banal activities like walking.
Habits are reflected in each individual’s pedestrian movement, something that Berger mentions as floating to the surface and easily recognizable in the motion of the city. But in embodying these habits, we were confronted with an issue- how do we embody these movements while maintaining their integrity, after they are decontextualized in an empty space? The intention may not be as clear, but we needed to ensure that the movement wouldn’t become artificial in a space devoid of the urban environment. Layering compositional elements on top of our basic pedestrian phrase was a task likely to dissociate its original context from the movement, but by exaggerating the movement we were able to contextualize it in a new dance form. Relinquishing the pedestrian intention, we created movement for movement’s sake, edging on the intention that could be found in concert dance all the while taking root in a pure source and being stretched further than the limits of the urban space allow.
