How it Works
A scientist or scholar communicates their research to a Bodystorming choreographer
A researcher and a Bodystorming choreographer connect and discuss how space, time, and energy (the core principles in dancemaking) may or may not factor into the research in question. The scientist or scholar shares their research in the most plain language possible. The choreographer seeks to gain a basic understanding of how the researcher believes space, time, and energy operate in that research.
The Bodystorming choreographer creates rules of motion to embody the research
The Bodystorming choreographer collaborates with the researcher and the other Bodystorm participants - who can be other artists, students, researchers, patients, medical personnel, etc. - to develop basic movement rules, define and design the model’s space and set the physical dynamics that participants will follow when the bodystorming model runs. All participants’ input and questions are welcomed while the model is developed
Observe, Refine and Repeat
After running the model, the bodystorming group shares observations made while the model was operating, The researcher and choreographer then process these observations, refine the model’s operations and run the model multiple times until the model is fully functional.
Interested in Bodystorming?
The Benefits of Bodystorming
The Bodystorming System is a flexible and reciprocal research method that benefits scientific and artistic research alike. For artists, the system offers unique improvisatory tools to develop choreographic structure and vocabulary. For scientists and scholars, it offers a low-cost rapid modeling system that can support, supplement and enhance benefitting scientific inquiry that is not reliant on time-consuming and generally more costly computer simulations. It supports collaborative research in which bodystormers contribute observations on their embodied experiences, leading to multifaceted understanding of resulting data.
“The cell is a violent place, where molecules are moving at hundreds of kilometers per hour. Working with dancers allows us to recreate opposing aspects – dynamics and order – in a creative and safe manner.”
David Odde | University of Minnesota
Biomedical Engineering Professor and Co-Founder Moving Cell Project
“Collaborations between these seemingly odd bedfellows can lead to truly path- breaking research and new perspectives on well-worn pathways.”
Carl Flink | Black Label Movement
BLaM Artistic Director & Co-Founder Moving Cell Project
A million and one ways to Bodystorm
Embodied Presentations
Black Label has created five different embodied TED Talks, including Dance v. Powerpoint: A Modest Proposal with 100,000s of online views. Work with artistic director Carl Flink and Black Label Movement to develop and present your own embodied presentation.
K-12 Education
Black Label has worked with Minnesota high school educators to use Bodystorming to deliver their science curriculum in their classrooms. Imagine your students moving to learn science rather than sitting behind a desk or in front of a computer.
Architectural Design
Is architecture very slow choreography or is choreography fast architecture? How can the moving body inform the design of the structures we live and move in?
Biomedical Research
Biomedical and biological research is the original core of the bodystorming system. The dance of life within the moving cell is built upon space, time and energy, which are the building blocks of choreography. Bodystorming has been applied to virus propagation, the hive behavior of Asian honey bees, cancer research, the evolution of frog species in eastern India, to name just a few. How can the moving body inform your research?
Water Flow Research
One of the primary features of water is flow. Bodystorming has been applied to ocean current and water distribution systems research.
Financial Markets
Even in the seemingly disembodied world of finance, Bodystorming has been used to examine the behavior of philanthropy and customer behavior.