A Digital Archive from Adesola Akinleye. Asking ‘What does it do to a dance and choreographer to be archived?‘ Part of Artist Archive.
Archiving with Bare Feet documents the choreographic process, Climbing with Bare Feet, and the 2007 performance that came from it: Truth & Transparency.
Truth & Transparency was inspired by Ralph Ellison’s ‘Invisible Man’ and Adesola’s reflections on bringing-up their own children as two Black youth. The piece researched Step and Crumping dance forms, and foreshadowed new technology using projection in real-time to manipulate the audience’s perception of dancers and space.
Archiving with Bare Feet takes up the challenge of archiving artistic process from Adesola’s perspective as a Black, female presenting, choreographer – a perspective which placed them outside the British dance mainstream in 2007.
Collating various materials – footage, reflections, restagings – the digital archive reflects on what happens to the work of a dancer or a choreographer when it is/they are archived. Instead of presenting choreographic work as something that lives outside of a particular time; this archive understands it as living, existing through ongoing processes and the artistic knowledge it generates.
Events
Launch – 15 March 2024
Explore
Responses
“Super interesting, love “naming” ones process and research.”
“Informative, accessible, inspiring”
Watch / Listen
Online Launch with Adesola Akinleye and navigations from Renée Bellamy and Natifah White
Reflections
“Adesola described the complex non-linear process of examination from different directions and perspectives … Dancers from the original piece in 2007, and current dancers gave their thoughts from their different viewpoints (one grateful to see the evidence of his performance as he no longer dances professionally), with Adesola reflecting on how the past, present and future can come together.”
Sally Lewis in Impressions of an APAC Study Day: A Personal Perspective
Resources
Credits
Adesola Akinleye
Adesola Akinleye is a choreographer artist-scholar creating dance works ranging from dance films, installation, texts to live performance that are often site-specific. They draw on Indigenous/Africanist worldviews to explore how movement demonstrates the intra-connection of body-mind-environment. Adesola’s work is characterized by an interest in glimpsing and voicing peoples lived experiences through creative moving image. A key aspect of their work is the artistry of exchanging creative processes. They co-direct DancingStrong Movement Lab. adesolaakinleye.com / Instagram
Project / Launch Credits
Created by Adesola Akinleye.
Launch navigators: Renée Bellamy and Natifah White.