the steps leading up but also down

2017

Commissioned Performance in response to Sightings: Michael Dean exhibition, "Lost True Leaves," at the Nasher Sculpture Center (Dallas, TX)

the steps leading up but also down is a movement response to Michael Dean at the Nasher Sculpture Center in Dallas, TX on January 9th, 2017. Feeding on the spare emotional geometry and smirking silence of Michael Dean, DGDG celebrates the artist’s fascination for the finite and fragmented nature of language. the steps leading up but also down begins with a dense attack of text – specialized, current, topical, yet ultimately pointless. From this foundation, the interaction between the dancers and the work is slowly deconstructed, finding inspiration in the sculpture’s human posture and instincts. The dancers discover hunger, conflict, civilization, and death as layers of cultural distance fall away. Between the physical tasks of the dancers, and the slow-moving puppetry of the exhibition, the steps leading up but also down provide the dismantled opera upon the spare, organic setting. Scored by Donovan Jones, Dallas’ Black Taffy, the manipulated electronic signal of a breathy vibraphone sings back Michael Dean’s repose.

Created and conceived by Danielle Georgiou and Justin Locklear. Performed by the Danielle Georgiou Dance Group with live music from Donovan Jones. The commissioning was organized by Karen Weiner (The Reading Room). Photos by Andi Harman.