FMP Part 1: Disseminating Research Mini Brief

Shiqi

Space and Distance

Relationship in between physical body and spirituality

Photo by Christoph Oberschneider

‘And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music.’

Friedrich Nietzsche

For a long period of time, this sentence has given me much power in building up myself as an individual. Our bodies are tunnel that absorb energy from our surroundings, it is flesh made up of different parts. Bones, veins, and muscles.

Through all senses, we are able to take messages from outside world. However, according to each individual, we choose what information to take in. Developing a filter inside our body as a tool for us to take in useful information. This is very personal and shows individuality.

‘Block the noise, choose what you need.’

SPACE BALANCE CONNECTION

Cluster Topic

Questions

How do we adjust ourself in receiving messages while submerging ourselves in different space

Initial Hypothesis

CONNECTION

Is there a balance in between spirituality and physical body?

If yes, to what extend should I express this balance ?

What does one individual existence mean to the entire world? What is the connection?

Through physical body and spirituality, what is the connection between these two areas to the world? (through Zen and other religions)

Dance Fever is the fifth studio album by English indie rock band Florence and the Machine, released on 13 May 2022.

The title and concept of Dance Fever originated in Welch’s fascination with choreomania, a social phenomenon in early modern Europe that involved groups of people dancing erratically.

Florence and the Machine

C H O R E O M A N I A

And I am freaking out in the middle of the street

With the complete conviction of someone

Who's never had anything actually really bad happen to them

But I am committed, now, to the feeling

I don't know how it started

Don't know how to stop it

Suddenly, I'm dancing

To imaginary music

Something's coming, so out of breath

I just kept spinning and I danced myself to death

Something's coming, so out of breath

I just kept spinning and I danced myself to death

And this is the end

And I'm thinking about her

Driving around in the backseat of a car

I'll be your demon daddy

And do they speak to you?

'Cause they speak to me, too

The pressure and the panic

You push your body through

Something's coming, so out of breath

I just kept spinning and I danced myself to death

Something's coming, so out of breath

I just kept spinning and I danced myself to death

You said that rock and roll is dead

But is that just because it has not been resurrected in your image?

Like if Jesus came back, but in a beautiful dress

And all the evangelicals were like, "Oh, yes”

Something's coming, so out of breath

I just kept spinning and I danced myself to death

(lyrics from Choreomania)

Regardless of the actual facts, the tale continues to grip our imagination: a lone figure who sparks a mass movement; a dance that is so captivating, so consuming, that it transcends individual will and physical limitation, sometimes with deadly consequences. It is the kind of event that ensnares even those of us who continue to write about it today, our prose filled with conjured details about the damage done to weary toes or the tick and pump of Frau Troffea's heart.

In the 400 or so years since this bizarre event – Strasbourg's socalled "dance plague" – occurred, many theories have been proffered to explain what exactly happened. It is an event that grips us to this day, inviting retellings, and inspiring artists and creatives to put their own spin on these strange happenings.

Regardless the fact of CHOREOMANIA as a mythology or a real phenomenon, it inspires me greatly by stimulating the imagination of the connection between physical body and spirituality. The movement of body expresses one’s emotions, feelings and motivation. Self development and self expression includes using both appearance and inner space to show one’s identity. However, what is the distance in between what we express and what’s really inside our shell?

In this mini brief, I researched broadly about self development and anything related to SELF as a main topic. I developed the broad idea by splitting it into three specific words which are space, selfawareness and connection. I always have this question in my head about how we present ourselves in daily life routine and the connection in between physical bodies and the spirit contained within the shell. I wonder if just by choosing our comfortable outfits and anything we use to dress ourselves help to express ourselves fully. I want to make an art work that discuss the relationship in between spirituality and physical body shell how we could possibly use different materials and objects that define ourselves to express oneself.

To discuss about body, we all are one way or another similar to each other. We all have a pair of leg, limbs, eyes, ears and one mouth and nose. However, it’s not only just about how we show and represent ourselves through clothes and dressing. I want to break through the idea and explore more possibility to express oneself using the objects that are personal, sentimental and unique to individual.

to discuss about the connection in between physical body and spirituality of an individual self. I researched about psychological ideas brought up by Freud and Jung, and other psychologists who researched about object permanence and object constancy. Furthermore I want to involve my personal experiences in self development over the years and embrace all the experiences and emotions caused by events along the path.

Stutz is a 2022 documantary film directed by Jonah Hill. The film chronicles the life and career of psychiatrist Dr. Phil Stutz, Hill's therapist. Through a serie of conversations, the stories and mental state behind both of them start to reveal. He believes that he is connected with his patients the moment he pass on the picture notes to them.

This documentary has a different approach towards the idea connection through psychology and therapy session. The relationship and connection of the patient and the therapist is subtle, they share the most intimate ‘secrets’ but they cannot cross the boundaries and get too close with each other. Your therpist may just be a projection of someone you love or someone that is very important to you.

Photo by Yavuz Pancareken

‘Stutz’

I made some notes while watching this film and the key terms that I find useful are:

Pyramid & Part X

Photo by Davide

Photo by Yavuz Pancareken

Yohji Yamamoto

The Space In Between Garment And Physical Body

Yohji Yamamoto creates a series of female garment and according to him they are specially for females in working class. He finds it sexy and beautiful to design baggy and loose clothing for women because he believes that working women can move more freely inside the wear.

The air can move freely in between the space of skin of women and the layer of fabric. He uses ‘space’ as a concept in most of his designs and I think this particularly gives me an idea of having the empty space and moving air in between the wearer and clothing creates more freedom and link in between them.

Not showing your body figure by wearing tight clothing means more freedom of letting your body feel the breeze.

Joan Miro

Joan‘s work is more abstract as he is very sentimental towards many things in life, especially natural. He builds his own connection with the natural.

Born in the seaport city of Barcelona, much of his work was influenced by the scenic seaside town, and the distinct style that he found in the area. In the 1920s, influenced by the writings of psychologist Sigmund Freud, the literary, intellectual, and artistic movement called Surrealism sought a revolution against the constraints of the rational mind; and by extension, they saw the rules of a society as oppressive.

Photo by Kevin Zaouali

Noa Goffer creates a wish list of drawings to satisfy her materialistic urges. Frankly speaking we cannot earn whatever we want in the world but no one tells us how to deal with our urge to shop and our materialistic need. Companies and brands focus on promotion to attract you to purchase however as artists, I like how she uses this way to ease her urge to purchase things. By drawing all these things on paper, it would help her to feel that she already owns these things which is a great way of dealing excessive desires and materialistic desires. It is about accepting yourself and build yourself through art.

‘She draws to satisfy her materialistic urge’

Loneliness figures

Artists Lilou, Yunran Chen and Dayhyun Kim depict lonely figures and daily life scenes to show the loneliness of an individual in crowds. The simple subject and composition is the key to the subject they want to discuss.

Photo by Kevin Zaouali

Individual existence

Photography as a medium captures three-dimensional objects and scenes into a two dimensional image that involves many delicate details from an arranged perspective view. Photograher Huang QingJun and Rosie Foster take photography of people and there room/belongings to express the existence of individual in a society.

Photo by Kevin Zaouali

Self portrait: Self examination

Painting/ drawing self portrait is a great way to see clear of yourself. Self portraits by Egon Schiele depicts how he view himself as an individual and I think the brushstrokes and lines he uses are very wild and messy within the first look but if looked even closer it is really expressive and bold. It is personal and filled with emotions.

Photo by Kevin Zaouali

Procession of the dead is a motif present in the folkloric traditions around the world. It mostly refers to a march of ghosts, phantoms or souls, sometimes commanded by a creature related to the Otherworld, the Underworld or the Afterlife. This painting shows a group of souls holding candles and move slowly with haloes. Not far away there is a dimly lighted church windows. The lonely figures and the dimmed light act as a huge contrast with the dark background .

‘Procession of souls’ by Louis Welden Hawkins

Human Figures

By John Morris

By Henry Moore

By Henry Moore

I visited Tate Modern and Tate Britain museum to look for inspirations on human figures. The work are made by several artists: ‘King & Queen’1952 by Henry Moore and sculpture by John Morris. The distorted and quite abstract figures are very alien like and even seem a bit inhuman. The inhuman and lonely style is very interesting to look at.

Human Figures

I made this collage during Thursday session and the pictures are taken in both Tate Britain and Tate Modern. I think the sculptures by Henry Moore works well with the sunset and some other architectural images. The lonely existence in universe is something I want to explore using human figures.

Photo by Kevin Zaouali

Figure made using soft clay

Notes about ‘space’ mentioned by yohji yamamoto and the idea of carrying your personal space with you just like soldier crab and snails. Wearing a baggy clothes is similar as bringing your own empty space, it provides you the safe zone.

Photo by Davide

Study of human figures

I sketched the people on street by looking out from my window. To capture the movement of their body while walking and their personal temperament.

I want to know more by sketching the people and their outfit and try to think about the stories behind each person.

Photo by Yavuz Pancareken

Photo by Yavuz Pancareken

These two quotes are said by my love one Michael. They inspired me to think deep about the meaning of self development and the process of doing so. According to Sigmund Freud‘s theory of self development, he believed that if you have a strong sense of self (ego), you're capable of understanding your own needs and also intuiting the limits that society puts on you. If you have a strong sense of self, you can move freely through life.

Photo by Davide

Photo by Yavuz Pancareken

‘It is not about finding who you are but to create who you are.’

‘Critical thinking is very important as it allows you to think and create. While reciting allows you to recite everything, all the poems in the world but critical thinking allows you to create.‘

Cathedral Effect

Standing under cherry blossom trees reminds me of the term called Cathedral Effect.

During the time of cherry blossom, I went to Battersea park to view the beautiful existence of these flowers. The nature inspires me a lot on the relationships in between the tree, flowers, bumble bees and myself. I am viewing them standing aside, but the moment I saw the beauty and appreciate their existence, I am also involved in. Standing under the tree make me feel safe as if all the branches has merged together to provide a shelter for me.

This principle was first mooted by Edward T Hall in the 1960s, when he noted that small chapels can make people feel hemmed in, whereas awe-inspiring cathedrals project all the freedom and openness of the heavens and cosmos above.

pattern

The lines and pattern created by wind in desert are the same as the pattern created by sea waves on seabed, I observed the stretch marks on my body and my veins have a connection with the lines I saw on Sahara desert on my trip to Morocco.

The light and shadow on desert are similar to a human body when I am looking it. If the patterns in nature is created by wind or waves, then the pattern and lines on my body are created by some sort of energy too.

For example my stretch marks, it is created by stretching your flesh and skin when you gain weight or grow taller drastically.

Photo by Yavuz Pancareken

Symmetrical balance

Symmetrical patterns on architectures makes me feel that it has arrived some sort of balance.

There are subtle differences in between each part, for example the human figures on the walls are different but the overall composition is balanced and symmetrical. During my trip to Morocco, an Islamic country, almost everything is symmetrical and I think this is their way of finding a balance through their religion.

Photo by Yavuz Pancareken

Contrast in Spaces

I noticed the difference in space can create a high contrast that is interesting to think of.

A lighted/warm area and in contrast of a dark area. The image on top is my room as comparison to the empty and dark street. The compact space in tube and the cold, dark night acts as a contrast too.

Photo by Davide

Imperfection

I broke my favourite bowl by accident the other day and it reminds me of the imperfection that some of us want to achieve. It has been with me for over six years and seeing it in this form-broken and torn, did not change my feeling and love towards it. The term Kintsugi (金継ぎ, “golden joinery”), also known as kintsukuroi (金繕い, “golden repair”), is the Japanese art of repairing broken pottery by mending the areas of breakage with lacquer dusted or mixed with powdered gold, silver, or platinum; the method is similar to the maki-e technique.

I might be able to use this technique or similar technique in my project to show the theme of imperfection on both objects and self-development.

Photo by Yavuz Pancareken

The invasion of bacteria on a tree has given them a special relationship and connection. The red little sprout on top of the yellowish bacteria is beautiful. Both the coexistence and colour combination.

6 words to sum up my project:

Personal space and safety space that are unique to us and in what kind of forms can space provide us a sense of comfort and safety.

How to find the connection and balance in between our physical body and spirituality?

Meaning of self development under Universe. Three categories of self( Id, ego, superego) and how to find a balance.

Project Question:

What is the balance and connection in between Spirituality and physical body?

Photo by Davide

Bibliography

Rennison, N 2015, Freud And Psychoanalysis : Everything You Need To Know About Id, Ego, Super-Ego and More, Oldcastle Books, Available from: ProQuest Ebook Central. [22 February 2023].

https://www.verywellmind.com/who-were-the-neo-freudians-2795576

https://www.itsnicethat.com/articles/rosie-foster-at-home-project-photography-050123

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2017/03/13/catherine-opie-all-american-subversive

https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20220512-the-people-who-danced-themselves-to-death

https://artemisdreaming.tumblr.com/post/105213071462/pina-bausch-yoshi-omori-via-waanderd-on

https://www.joan-miro.net/

https://www.guggenheim.org/artwork/artist/joan-miro

https://www.itsnicethat.com/articles/noa-goffer-project-illustration210323?fbclid=PAAaZh1Jf4SyZyDPu1k52rF4NqDXs1jjUW_HjmJTVUPeJqefsADYP_UkXKqMg

https://www.artsy.net/artist/daehyun-kim

https://www.tate.org.uk/whats-on/tate-liverpool/life-motion-egon-schiele-francesca-woodman/five-things-know-egon

https://quininedesign.com/perspectives/design-principles-cathedral-effect

https://www.simplypsychology.org/psyche.html

Photo by Davide

Photo by Yavuz Pancareken

Photo by Davide

Photo by Yavuz Pancareken

Space and Distance

Relationship in between physical body and spirituality

Shiqi Ran