Strokes of
Imagination
"A Celebration of Hand Drawing, Choreography and Photography"
Anderson Carvalho
Connecting the World Through Art, Dance
Anderson Carvalho Dance & Choreography
Hand Drawing is an ability that allowed me to communicate in a unique way, surpassing the limitations of spoken or written language. It empowers to depict how things function and appear visually. With just a pen and a paper, I discovered that I could heal and inspire others and captivate their imagination.
When I started 'Strokes of Imagination' in 2020 as a personal journey, my intention was to heal, and to reorganize my thoughts. I found in drawing a safe space to deal with my emotions, to run away from everything that was shuffling my inner world. I was searching for peace and understanding where I come from and what happened in the past that made who I am today. I travelled back in time and found myself at the age of 8 years old rediscovering the art of drawing.
My original plan took a detour. I am a choreographer and throughout the searching for meaningful connections I discovered the drawings that was emerging had a connection not only with my life journey, but it was also deep rooted in the body movement journey I have been exploring as a choreographer. The drawings became part of my choreography practice and performances resulting in a meaningful and intimate process.
I am delighted to present you the drawing knowledge that I have built up for the last two years through my personal journey at home and encounters in the dance studio, where I learned to think like a designer and create drawings that unveil a world unseen before, through the art of dance and photography.
Each drawing unveils a facet of my creative process, portraying my ability to explore and translate emotion and movement into intricate patterns capturing the ephemeral nature of the art of composition that later will be translated on the dancer’s body and movement onstage. From the initial sparks of inspiration to the final compositions, my approach challenges the viewers’ perceptions inviting them to reimagine the artistic possibilities that lie at the intersection of drawing, choreography and photography.
I attempted to shatter conventional notions by employing drawing as dynamic tool for choreography making. The lines and shapes I meticulously craft dance and intertwine, echoing the fluid motions of bodies in space. Through the work process I reveal the invisible threads connecting the visual and performing arts, offering a fresh perspective on the dynamic relationship between drawing and choreography.
Capturing the Unexpected, the Invisible
Each drawing unveils a facet of my creative process, portraying my ability to explore and translate emotion and movement into intricate patterns capturing the ephemeral nature of the art of composition that later on will be translated on the dancers body and movement onstage. From the initial sparks of inspiration to the final compositions, my approach challenges the viewer perceptions inviting them to reimagine the artistic possibilities that lie at the intersection of drawing, choreography and photography.
I attempted to shatter conventional notions by employing drawing as dynamic tool for choreography making. The lines and shapes I meticulously craft dance and intertwine, echoing the fluid motions of bodies in space. Through the work process I reveal the invisible threads connecting the visual and performing arts, offering a fresh perspective on the dynamic relationship between drawing and choreography.
Silent Symphony of Feelings | Video Art 2024
Finding Inspiration In Every Turn
Inspire To Aspire
Drawing and Choreography
Drawing and choreography, while seemingly different art forms, share commonalities and can influence each other in various ways. Both drawing and choreography involve the creation of visual compositions, whether on paper or in physical space, and require a keen sense of composition, movement, balance, and expression. They are interconnected through their shared focus on composition, movement, expression, and collaboration. I found in both disciplines the possibility to draw inspiration, leading to cross-pollination of ideas and the creation of innovative and multidisciplinary art form that blur the boundaries between visual and performing arts.
Video Art 2024
By merging drawings with body movement, I created a new dance work titled *Silent Symphony of Feelings 2024*. This theatrical dance performance emerges from the intricate beauty of our shared human experiences, weaving together a series of interconnected stories and movements. It reveals the hidden depths of our emotions and invites us to reflect on the complex interplay between memories, past experiences, bodies, spaces, sound, drawing, and our collective consciousness.
In *Silent Symphony of Feelings*, the drawings are not only integral to the choreographic practice but also become a part of the dancers' costumes. Each dancer wears a costume made from fabric printed with a drawing created during the work's creative process. The theatrical dance performance resulted in a Video Art, created to be presented in galleries and art exhibition.
Inspire To Aspire
Anderson Carvalho | Eric Raeber
Unleashing The Potential of Collaboration
Unleashing The Potential of Collaboration
Anderson Carvalho | Eric Raeber
Exploring the fascinating connection between movements, drawing and time.
"Not only did I get to know Anderson Carvalho over these three days, but he shared his unique approach to choreography. This led us to imagine a concept that uniquely represents his methods, combining his abstract drawings that guide his choreography, with the dancers' movement." - Eric Raeber
In May 2024 I went to South Africa. During my travels I like to collaborate with dancers and choreographers to produce imagery.
My only ask is that they host me. Not only does it make my traveling more affordable, but more importantly, it creates connections and creative exchanges that are simply not possible if we just meet for a photo shoot.
During this trip I was honored to meet Anderson Carvalho. While originally from Brazil, this choreographer shares his time between Cape Town and Amsterdam. He developed a unique approach to choreography, that requires understanding what happened in the past, and shaped who his dancers are as persons today. He creates the structure and provides a safe environment in which dancers experience vulnerability. He gathers their stories, relentlessly asking "why".
In the context of his most recent work, these stories are transcribed into abstract drawings and sound bites which are the canvas of movement and music.
On the second day, I attended a rehearsal, which allowed me to get acquainted to his work and his dancers, as well as for them to get to know my way of collaborating to create images: my images appear in real time on a tablet and I always welcome ideas, critique and suggestions.
Inspire To Aspire
Video Art 2024 - Trailer
Credits
Concept | Hand-drawing | Choreography
Anderson Carvalho
Photography | Editing
Eric Raeber
Dancers
Alice Maybin
Gemma Threhen
Nicolas Laubscher
Rhapsody Stiggers
Weronika Kaminska
Caitlyn Casson - Video Art
Video Art - Silent Symphony of Feelings
Original Music Composition
Adam Claussen
Videography
Marko de Beer
Choreography Advisory
Lindy Raizenberg
Rehearsal Manager
Farnel Smart
Supported by
Anderson Carvalho Dance & Choreography
Tristan Finance NL/SA
Strokes of Imagination | Anderson Carvalho
Stroke of Imagination Blueprint-Room
