Reasoning about change...

 
    Reading through blog posts about Sunday's discussion around "thinking ,talking and changing" ,which I could not attend due to work, gave me the opportunity to give myself a moment to make a connection between these 3 words and also think about where I place myself at the moment as an artist.
I think that everyone goes through a phase in life where they struggle to find where they belong: as dancers-as artists-as teachers even as humans in a more general way...
As I call it the "disorientation of self".

    Being vulnerable and uncertain regarding matters around dance such as body imaging, stereotyping,  <which is a big area of research in my research inquiry now in Module 3> color, culture etc. are something that have been debatable issues for many years now in this field.
These issues can provide an unsettling feeling to many, and have a big impact on the self imaging throughout the lifespan.

Moreover...
Thinking about that, lead me thinking about these:
-Being uncertain about something in life, gives you the advantage to have options!
-Having to have options, give you the chance to explore and change as a human!
-Exploration and change, gives you the chance for advancement!

    Everyday for me is now throughout my research, is  an opportunity for a deep analysis around matters such as these, a chance to have strong connections with others, hear their own personal experiences , share mine with them as a dance teacher, look through existing literature, and as a result  see how the profession of a dance teacher has an impact on these existing topics.

What I am brainstorming at the moment that will be part of my inquiry, is the role of the teacher as a whole.
Should a dance teacher be a mentor? a friend? an advisor? even in a way a psychologist that helps personal problems that emerge on the way? A combination of all of the above?
Does this lead to the "disorientation" that I've mentioned before?

What are your thoughts on this?
Maria

Thinking about theories and framework!

 Today we had a very interesting conversation based on Angela Woodhouse work as a professional and her projects with many well-known artists throughout the years.
Some of her work that seemed really interesting to me and would definitely look into them more, is the relation between materials-body, the relationship between the space and the dancer throughout performances, and and also her projects around the connection of dancers and objects.
While we were looking into her work, I was brainstorming about theories that I am personally engaging with in this Module and the framework I am currently developing around that, and my own data.
How I am looking at the growth of a theoretical framework (and how I progressed my own inquiry until now) is like this:
1.Identification of the statement I want to make and clearly wrote down my own research questions.
2.Evaluation of relevant theories around my topic of research.
3.Find and show where my own research sits in. :)
But,  in mind the following question (or thought), kept going round,
Should we place ourselves in a critical/challenging position towards existing theories, or just use these existing theories as a base for our own results/data development at the end of the research?
I am now thinking that we should do both, this way more questions will be developed and we will be able to dive into more research on the way...
Challenging myself with more questions is something that is constantly happening throughout this MA journey and is something I personally find really exciting.

Maria

Diving into my research inquiry

On Sunday we had a very interesting discussion based on Module 3 and everyone's research inquiries.
It was great  to hear everyone's research points and be able to discuss all of the questions we had around them.
I must say I was very nervous when my turn came to discuss my inquiry, mainly because I think that was the moment when it all became very realistic to me! Also I think that speaking out loud about it rather than just developing my thoughts and ideas in my own head, made me realize that I am actually doing this and I am actually in the process of this fascinating journey :)
Being able to answer questions about it, and even explaining my vision of how this will develop made me brainstorm even more and made me want to ask even more questions around my own research points.

 "Where am I now?"
So I am currently out in the field doing my interviews for my research inquiry, and I must say that it is a process I am enjoying quite much. I haven't done any interviews in the past so having to ask questions to other practitioners, hearing their ideas, thoughts is very interesting to say the least! I think that its like I am giving others the opportunity to share their own experiences and this gives back to me the chance to discuss further with them, ask more questions and more general allow a flow in the process of the interviews.

Looking forward to see how this process will develop.
Maria