Drawing connections

Last night I drew some dancers . Having been dancing too, I was less looking at external forms and more internally sensing.

Tony Osborne introduced the second of his Friday workshop series with a warm-up beginning with the heart. Lying on the floor, we were led to visualise our blood pumping through our bodies. Gradually I stirred, then moved body parts into the space around, and against the floor beneath me. Through breath and sense of blood flow, my body found connectivity within itself and in the room. The branching of vessels pumping my blood as I moved was a powerful image for me. It allowed me to make the connection between my internal and external landscapes. I was aware of my body drawing a landscape, shaping and shaped by my pumping heart.

Scores in body shaping with sound, unpremeditated, and in rapid succession followed. We then stood simply in front of the group for 10 seconds. This solo in stillness and gaze was a challenge. I felt uncomfortable being watched. It helped me to look at the audience as I would if I was drawing them, observing their forms as intriguing structures.

Then that view of drawing changed!

Lastly in the evening we performed in duets or trios. Drawing the dancers I could feel the deep connections I’d experienced in the warm-up. This was a new approach to drawing – connecting with others through more of myself.