These pages include parts of the process diary, notes on process, reading, as well as photos from my research process.  These are abstracts of my research and therefore curated in their own right to show not only my somewhat sprawling process but also my honest attempt to share how I document and research in my process. These “written expositions” mirrors how I gather material when I work as a performer and performance maker. This document is as much about me finding out what I did in the project as you are attempting to understand the project´s content, methods and results. It is me looking at the produced material from the outside, curating it to try out words on the method, content and material. I have written about the work reflectively at the same time as I invite you into this action. It´s speculative and intimate.   During my master studies in Performing Arts, I have reflected on what it means to be a performer beyond the symbolic meaning of it- such, as being material or representation for someone else work. I have investigated what the performer spends time doing and reflecting on beyond what is seen “on stage”, and present that, whatever it is and looks like. I have then, in my final degree project, looked at how I can use my gained knowledge as a mainly interactive performer in relation to performance arts and black feminism theory to create my own artistic practice.   My aim has been to do this by being, meaning to exist with, breathing with, becoming part of, attending to and situating myself in relation to performance arts and black feminism theory in a mindful manner.

Throughout the history of art, the pastel medium has been considered a medium of secondary interest. Despite its pulsating textures, vibrant colors, and unique receptivity to touch, this medium has been recognized above all for its swiftness in stroke and subsequent ability of the artist to record images of fleeting moments and ideas almost instantaneously. The focus on the advantageous rapidity of the pastel, however, hindered the pastel medium's potential as a mere preliminary technique to working with grander mediums, such as oil paint, thus failing to recognize the prominence of pastel in capturing character. This research endeavor focuses on a very specific era with comparably high usage of pastel-- late nineteenth-century Paris--and the distinctive characteristic that defines said era--the hyper-sexuality of the Parisian prostitute. The eminent presence of prostitution and the consequential iconography of female sexuality in late nineteenth-century Paris defined the world of French Bohemia and seeped into the artistic exchange of the era. Although holding a traditionally subsidiary position to other historically primary mediums, the pastel medium prevailed in communicating the sexuality, sensuality, and promiscuity of the sinful female in Paris at the close of the century. The pastel works of prominent artists in the nightlife milieu such as Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec and Edgar Degas which revolve around the theme of prostitution serve as key illustrations of the distinctive ability of the ephemeral medium to capture the mood and personality--and therefore the sensual quintessence--of its subject. Through contextual and visual analysis, this research endeavor thus ultimately aims to lift the traditionally secondary pastel medium to one of impressive proportions, emphasizing its unique advantages and raising its overall credence.

La Petite danseuse de quatorze ans (1881) de l’artiste français Edgar Degas (1834-1917) représente et déforme plusieurs catégories sociales et artistiques de son époque. L’œuvre peut ainsi être lue comme une mise en abyme à la fois des changements sociaux et des peurs qu’ils suscitent quant aux redéfinitions du rôle et de la place de la sculpture dans l’art et de l’art, des classes sociales, de la science et de la femme dans la société qui s’opèrent dans la seconde moitié du 19e siècle. D’une mise en contexte de l’œuvre à une analyse de la figure de la ballerine, en passant par une lecture du monde de la poupée et de la criminalité, nous chercherons à montrer comment l’œuvre offre une lecture subversive des valeurs qui sous-tendent ces catégories structurelles du Paris industriel. Ce jeu des catégories fait de la Petite danseuse une œuvre instable et ambiguë à l’image, peut-être exacerbée, de la société. La sculpture de Degas joue avec et surtout entre ces divers pôles de la société parisienne, décloisonnant ceux-ci et proposant une autre façon de comprendre la société contemporaine. Prenant ancrage dans un discours critique postmoderne, féministe et postcolonialist, le présent travail se propose ainsi de réactualiser la fonction critique de l’œuvre. / The Little Dancer Aged Fourteen (1881) of French artist Edgar Degas (1834-1917) represents and deconstructs all at once, many social and artistic categories of its own time. The work represents social changes and the fear that they generate as it relates to the place of sculpture in art and of art, social classes, science and women’s role in society. Degas’ sculpture plays with and between these structures, deconstructing them and offering new ways of understanding contemporary society. After putting the work in context, we look at the link it has with dolls, how it addresses criminality, and how it questions the ballerina image. The Little Dancer then becomes an ambiguous, unstable and indefinable work reflecting in an acute way its society. Rooted in postmodernism, feminism and postcolonialism, we will explain how the sculpture offers a subversive reading of the values subtending industrial 19th Century Parisian constructs.

La Petite danseuse de quatorze ans (1881) de l’artiste français Edgar Degas (1834-1917) représente et déforme plusieurs catégories sociales et artistiques de son époque. L’œuvre peut ainsi être lue comme une mise en abyme à la fois des changements sociaux et des peurs qu’ils suscitent quant aux redéfinitions du rôle et de la place de la sculpture dans l’art et de l’art, des classes sociales, de la science et de la femme dans la société qui s’opèrent dans la seconde moitié du 19e siècle. D’une mise en contexte de l’œuvre à une analyse de la figure de la ballerine, en passant par une lecture du monde de la poupée et de la criminalité, nous chercherons à montrer comment l’œuvre offre une lecture subversive des valeurs qui sous-tendent ces catégories structurelles du Paris industriel. Ce jeu des catégories fait de la Petite danseuse une œuvre instable et ambiguë à l’image, peut-être exacerbée, de la société. La sculpture de Degas joue avec et surtout entre ces divers pôles de la société parisienne, décloisonnant ceux-ci et proposant une autre façon de comprendre la société contemporaine. Prenant ancrage dans un discours critique postmoderne, féministe et postcolonialist, le présent travail se propose ainsi de réactualiser la fonction critique de l’œuvre. / The Little Dancer Aged Fourteen (1881) of French artist Edgar Degas (1834-1917) represents and deconstructs all at once, many social and artistic categories of its own time. The work represents social changes and the fear that they generate as it relates to the place of sculpture in art and of art, social classes, science and women’s role in society. Degas’ sculpture plays with and between these structures, deconstructing them and offering new ways of understanding contemporary society. After putting the work in context, we look at the link it has with dolls, how it addresses criminality, and how it questions the ballerina image. The Little Dancer then becomes an ambiguous, unstable and indefinable work reflecting in an acute way its society. Rooted in postmodernism, feminism and postcolonialism, we will explain how the sculpture offers a subversive reading of the values subtending industrial 19th Century Parisian constructs.

The first opera by Bohuslav Martinů (from the total of 16) named Voják a tanečnice (The Soldier and the Dancer), H. 162 was created in the initial years of Martinů's stay in Paris (1926-1927), when the effort to reflect different contemporary music trends and influences can be traced in his compositions. Voják a tanečnice is an original example of absorbing such influences on the background of the three-act comic opera. Together with the librettist, Jan Löwenbach, they tried to create a "new opera buffa", which was however not understood by the contemporary reviewers. The opera was first performed in Brno in 1928. The frequency of the first performances of Martinů's stage works in the National Theatre in Brno indicates that the first performance of his first opera was not a coincidence but a part of targeted dramaturgy at the Brno stage. The opera follows both the tradition of an opera and tendencies in art of the 1920's, e. g. playing with humour in music, the epic theatre inspirations or using ancient theme. Powered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org)

Depuis toujours, Salomé hante les esprits et se profile dans les créations artistiques. Elle évolue selon les siècles, changeant selon l’humeur des artistes, assouvissant leur désir créateur. Cependant, ce sont les artistes symbolistes et décadents qui vont donner à la danseuse biblique son véritable essor et l’imposer comme une véritable figure archétypale, avec la danse au cœur de cette recréation. L’art de Terpsichore s’empare également de Salomé et les techniques scéniques et chorégraphiques permettent l’affirmation de nouvelles idées sociales, de courants de danse novateurs ainsi que le développement de nouveaux savoir-faire artistiques à travers la figure de la fille d’Hérodiade. Notre travail va porter non pas sur Salomé dans l’absolu, mais sur sa danse en tant que telle, et plus particulièrement sur la façon dont elle est retranscrite dans les textes et sur scène. Il s’agira donc de se demander, à travers la figure de la danseuse, quelles sont les connivences entre les deux langages, celui du corps, des gestes, et celui des mots. En quoi Salomé arrive-t-elle à conjuguer influence artistique et révolution socioculturelle ? / Salomé has always been haunting our minds and sneaking into artistic creations. She evolves through the centuries, changing with artists' state of mind and meeting their creative desire. However, symbolist and decadent artists are those who gave the biblical dancer her real take-off, imposed her as a true archetypal figure, with dance at the heart of the recreation. Terpsichore's art also takes hold of Salome and stage and chorography techniques enable the assertion of new social ideas, innovative dance trends and the development of new artistic know-hows through the myth of Herodias. This work tackles not Salome in absolute, but rather her dance, and more specifically the way it is expressed in writings and on stage. We shall see, through the figure of the dancer, what complicity bond the two languages, that of the body and the moves, and that of the words. How does Salome mix artistic influence and social and cultural revolution?

Sport and dance injuries have increased despite improvements in coaching techniques and medical care. Other factors, including psychological ones, were therefore thought to play a role in injury vulnerability. Most of the attempts to explain how psychological variables can affect an athlete's predisposition to injury have been based on anxiety or stress concepts. In this survey type study an interactive approach to stress has been adopted with the goal of finding a relationship between stress and injury in a group of professional ballet dancers. No simple direct relationship was found. Multiple regression analysis was performed and a more complicated relationship between stress indicators and injury was found. When an attempt was made to investigate the significant interaction, no significant correlations were found. However, the correlations were found to be large and negative. This could indicate that if the sample size had been larger significant correlations may have been found. / Psychology / M.A. (Psychology)

Sport and dance injuries have increased despite improvements in coaching techniques and medical care. Other factors, including psychological ones, were therefore thought to play a role in injury vulnerability. Most of the attempts to explain how psychological variables can affect an athlete's predisposition to injury have been based on anxiety or stress concepts. In this survey type study an interactive approach to stress has been adopted with the goal of finding a relationship between stress and injury in a group of professional ballet dancers. No simple direct relationship was found. Multiple regression analysis was performed and a more complicated relationship between stress indicators and injury was found. When an attempt was made to investigate the significant interaction, no significant correlations were found. However, the correlations were found to be large and negative. This could indicate that if the sample size had been larger significant correlations may have been found. / Psychology / M.A. (Psychology)

Les carrières artistiques constituent un domaine très peu étudié dans le champ des relations industrielles. Celles-ci représentent pourtant un observatoire très puissant pour examiner et anticiper l’évolution des professions dans un contexte où plusieurs auteurs ont émis l’hypothèse que de nombreux métiers, notamment ceux du domaine de la recherche scientifique et des professions créatives, sont appelées à évoluer selon des formes qui se rapprochent des conditions d’organisation et des formes d’emploi des métiers artistiques. La présente recherche a pour objet l’étude des facteurs qui influencent les artistes professionnels de la danse à entreprendre une transition de carrière. Plus précisément, il s’agit d’étudier comment s’opèrent et sont vécues les transitions de carrière provoquées par des blessures ou des maladies professionnelles, incluant l’usure, la diminution des capacités physiques et l’invalidité, chez les danseuses et les danseurs professionnels à Montréal. La réalisation de cette recherche repose sur une analyse transversale du matériel de recherche qui comprend des données quantitatives et qualitatives. La double comparaison des données convergentes et divergentes de l’expérience vécue des participants relativement aux opinions, aux perceptions, aux sentiments et aux attitudes permet, par ces lignes de convergences et de fuites, de tirer des conclusions plus larges. À l’aide de cette méthodologie de recherche, cette étude vise à reconnaître: 1) que les transitions de carrière provoquées par ces facteurs physiques sont difficiles à vivre étant donné qu’elles sont inattendues, ce qui fait d’elles une forme de transition contrainte et, 2) que les transitions de carrière provoquées par ces facteurs physiques sont difficiles à vivre étant associées à d’importantes difficultés psychologiques et identitaires. Par cette analyse, nous constatons qu’il existe deux degrés de transitions de carrières provoquées par des facteurs physiques : celles qui sont provoquées par une blessure grave ou une maladie professionnelle et celles qui sont provoquées par une installation graduelle de la douleur en raison d’une microblessure, d’une usure ou d’une diminution des capacités physiques. En étudiant les évènements menant à ces types de transition, nous nous attardons à définir ce que nous entendons par « contrainte » et nous détaillons les caractéristiques des transitions qu’elles engendrent. Nous arrivons à la conclusion que ces deux degrés de transitions correspondent à la nature d’une transition de carrière contrainte ce qui fait d’elles des processus difficiles à vivre notamment raison de leur caractère inattendu. En plus de constater que celles-ci sont effectivement associées à différentes difficultés psychologiques et identitaires, nous identifions les raisons qui expliquent l’émergence de ces difficultés. Cette étude permet d’étudier la survenance des événements qui mènent à ces transitions de carrière et permet de porter un regard sur les services offerts par la Commission des normes, de l’équité, de la santé et de la sécurité du travail (CNESST). Au final, des enseignements plus généraux et applicables à d’autres professions précaires qui ne relèvent pas du domaine artistique sont tirés de cette étude. / Artistic careers have been under-studied in the field of industrial relations. This is the case despite several researchers having recently suggested that an increasing number of professions, including academic and creative ones, are likely to evolve and present similar organizational conditions and employment forms to the ones we observe in artistic labour markets. This research addresses the factors influencing professional dance artists to undertake a career transition. More precisely, we study how career transitions induced by occupational injuries and diseases operate, and how they are experienced by professional dance artists in Montreal. We take into consideration different manifestations of occupational injuries and diseases such as wear, decreasing physical abilities and disability. From a methodological standpoint, this research is supported by a transversal analysis of both quantitative and qualitative data. The double comparison of convergent and divergent data relating to the experience of career transitioning, including the participants’ opinions, perceptions, feelings and attitudes, allows us to draw larger conclusions. This study highlights that (1) career transitions induced by physical factors are challenging because of their unexpected nature. We consider these transitions to be constrained ones, because they are forced upon professional dance artists instead of being the result of a voluntary and planned process. This study also shows that (2) career transitions induced by physical factors represent a challenging experience for professional dance artists because of their association with major psychological and identity difficulties. This research shows the existence of two different degrees of career transitions induced by physical factors in the professional dance sector in Montreal. The first relates to transitions induced by occupational injuries or diseases. The second relates to transitions induced by a gradual settling of pain due to a microinjury, wear or decreasing physical abilities. By studying the events leading to these two degrees of transitions, we define our concept of constrained transition and detail the characteristics of the different types of transitions the formers can lead to. We conclude that the two types of transitions correspond to constrained transitions, which makes them challenging experiences because of their unexpected nature. Beyond concluding that constrained transitions are associated with different major psychological and identity difficulties, we also identify the reasons explaining the emergence of those difficulties. This study allows for a better understanding of the factors leading to constrained career transitions in the professional dance sector in Montreal. This opens up new perspectives to reflect on the services offered by the Commission des normes, de l’équité, de la santé et de la sécurité du travail (CNESST). General reflections and contributions applying to other precarious professions are also discussed.

This thesis is an investigation of the complex processes and relationships between the physical human performer and the technologically manufactured cyber-human counterpart. I acted as both researcher and the physical human performer, deeply engaged in the moment-to-moment creation of events unfolding within a shared virtual reality environment. As the primary instigator and activator of the cyber-human partner, I maintained a balance between the live and technological performance elements, prioritizing the production of content and meaning. By way of using practice as research, this thesis argues that in considering interactions between cyber-human and human performers, it is crucial to move beyond discussions of technology when considering interactions between cyber-humans and human performers to an analysis of emotional content, the powers of poetic imagery, the trust that is developed through sensory perception and the evocation of complex relationships. A theoretical model is constructed to describe the relationship between a cyber-human and a human performer in the five works created specifically for this thesis, which is not substantially different from that between human performers. Technological exploration allows for the observation and analysis of various relationships, furthering an expanded understanding of ‘movement as content’ beyond the electronic connection. Each of the works created for this research used new and innovative technologies, including virtual reality, multiple interactive systems, six generations of wearable computers, motion capture technology, high-end digital lighting projectors, various projection screens, smart electronically charged fabrics, multiple sensory sensitive devices and intelligent sensory charged alternative performance spaces. They were most often collaboratively created in order to augment all aspects of the performance and create the sense of community found in digital live dance performances/events. These works are identified as one continuous line of energy and discovery, each representing a slight variation on the premise that a working, caring, visceral and poetic content occurs beyond the technological tools. Consequently, a shift in the physical human’s psyche overwhelms the act of performance. Scholarship and reflection on the works have been integral to my creative process throughout. The goals of this thesis, the works created and the resulting methodologies are to investigate performance to heighten the multiple ways we experience and interact with the world. This maximizes connection and results in a highly interactive, improvisational, dynamic, non-linear, immediate, accessible, agential, reciprocal, emotional, visceral and transformative experience without boundaries between the virtual and physical for physical humans, cyborgs and cyber-humans alike.