DRAFT PROPOSAL.
Title: “Manipulating the emotional body”.
A research regarding the Body of the emotional vocalizations of crying and laughing.
The aim of the research lies on finding if, when and how an artwork manipulates, influences, facilitates a viewer’s emotional behaviours of crying and laughing.
– How can I make you cry or laugh?
– What do you prefer: cry or laugh? Or both in the same time?
– How can I change the way you cry or laugh?
I am interested, through an active observation of myself and the others, to explore the process and the physicality of those emotional reactions, their relation to pain and pleasure and their similarities –differences in the context of “private” and “public”. The project will result in form of documentation of the research. At this point I am not sure how the exploration will manifest itself but my intention is to present a body of work that will be presented as a combination of video installation, sound text and live performance that will challenge viewers’ emotions.
Some sub-questions related to the main research question are:
-How the body moves whilst crying/laughing?
-(How) is it possible to cry or laugh without external stimuli?
-What does happen when the reaction of crying shift from a “private” moment to a “public” moment?
-How emotional behaviours become “abstract” actions and are transformed to an artwork?
– How can the emotions can be (con)fused within an artwork?
-What kind of somatic practices can be developed/used in order to be facilitated the movement research in a state of crying or laughing?
Research methodology.
In order to facilitate the process of the research I plan to use different methodological tools like:
-diary-video/photo documentation of myself during the somatic exploration of crying and laughing.
-use of a blog during the process to collectand reflect on the material.
-records of sounds from different people .
-reading of texts in relation to the topic from sociological, philosophical, scientific, artistic point of view.
-use of web resources.
-interviews about personal moments and experience of laughing and crying.
The research will regard my self and the others. Regarding “Myself” the exploration /observation and movement research will take place in a studio as well in a private space and it will be documented through video/photo/sound each moment that involves crying or laughter. Concerning the “Others”, people will be invited to participate voluntarily in one hour session –research in order to extract video and sound material regarding the topic that it will be edit at the end of the day in order to create a collage of experiences.
