The Swim series is about the vernacular dance and choreography inherent in the quotidian experience of swimming. In these works water becomes the medium through which figures suspend and move, connecting with each other in a dance despite the rigid construction of the grid in which they find themselves. In the work I am looking at the choreography of the individual when his/her weight is lifted by the water. Each person’s body responds to the freedom of weightlessness in the water environment in a unique way. This is what fascinates me when observing ordinary people moving in the world and moving in the water. Later, when composing the pieces, I look for patterns of movement and rhythms that speak about how the subjects, who become my “dancers,” relate to each other in the overall choreography of the scene. I construct specific patterns of movement across the space of the photograph. I’m interested in how each dancer’s movements lead into, compliment, contrast, and punctuate the movements of the other. The overall structure of the work forces a separation between the individuals while at the same time it creates connections through implied lines of movement that speak to the idea of individuals working in consort within the larger structure of “the dance.”
The works are constructed using the grid as a point of departure. Within the confines of the grid’s rigidity I look for the organic rhythms of the water and dancers to emerge. I enjoy working within this contradictory space where the unyielding structure of the grid attempts to contain the fluidity of the water and bodies and where the tension between separation and connection reflect the language of dance itself.