Ruch – podstawa realności świata ożywionego

Abstract

Whether in science or in art, choreographic strategies are grounded in movement. Thus, a kinetic dynamic is integral to choreographic strategies in both the pursuit of scientific knowledge about some phenomenon and in the creation of works of art, a kinetic dynamic that is tied to thinking in movement and to the qualitative dynamics of movement. In order to bring this foundational reality of movement to the fore, the chapter first details common practices and ways of thinking that are obstacles to its recognition, obstacles running from dictionary definitions to embodiments of all kinds. In the process of critically specifying these common practices and ways of thinking, the chapter shows how, on the basis of the inherent qualitative dynamics of movement, a dynamic congruency exists between emotions and movement and how in our everyday lives, alone and with others, we create synergies of meaningful movement. It in fact shows how both Buddhist expositions of mind and phenomenological analyses of consciousness are anchored in movement and in turn how and why talk of mirror neurons and embodied simulation are benighted scientific attempts to explain the experience of movement. The chapter then turns to paradigms of choreographic strategies in science and in art, the first detailing neuroscience research studies focusing on brain cell interactions, the second detailing Merce Cunningham’s description of his approach to choreographing and learning a new solo dance. In each instance – whether a matter of science or of art – movement and the practice of thinking in movement are at the core of the choreographic strategy.