| Not Here Not There Artistic exploration of the concept of time and the possibility to escape from it: a dream, a poem, an image. A poetical, sensorial research of the notion of time and the possibility to both sense it and escape from it. Time - not the scientific or the philosophical concept of time - but time as a being, as a subject for the senses, the psyche, the intuitive body. The research uses a performative approach, in the context of an imagined time-travel experience. Looking for a means to experience the limits of time, the performer engages in a play, letting the body improvise the movement in an attempt to escape from the linearity of time - by sensing its texture, its pulse, its breath.  While investigating the Sanskrit notion of Sanātana, the concept of time emerged as the subject for this exploration. What makes the quality of time? Is it its rhythm, its speed, the alternative density and emptiness of its content? Or is it the impact that its content - the events - have on our perception? Is time a context that contains everything we can perceive? What is its nature? Does time exist within something else, a larger context? Do we need to see that larger context, in order to see the borders, the limits of time? Do we need to know its size in order to understand it? Could we measure time by the interval between two heart beats, or the duration of a breath, instead of seconds? Would that change our understanding of it? With thanks to Elise Passavant for filming, Eléonore Didier for feed-back, Ioan Contiu for the music and The Romanian Cultural Intitute in Paris for the grant. Filmé au Centre National de la Danse au Pantin. |