Planted spoke to our ecological Artist-in-Residence Jody Sperling about how her work “interconnects the body’s relationship with the larger environment.”
What would be one thing in nature that you associate with stillness and that consistently moves you?
I am constantly astounded by trees. Of course they are not actually still, even trunks that are not swayed by a breeze, but they grow at a pace we don’t easily perceive. I aspire to linger in treetime.
A new piece is born out of each of your collaborations, modeling interconnectedness. How deeply are your actions and creations rooted in ecologies? And at what pace do you think they will bring about a more equitable future?
Yes! Every piece requires so many collaborations—all of the artists, to be sure (the dancers, composer, costume designer, textile artist, dramaturge, etc.), but also our Board and the people who support the work with money and time, and all of our partner organizations (made of amazing people) that collaborate by offering space or organizing events—that when you break it down, a hundred people could be involved in what might appear to be a solo. We are deeply entrenched now in a residency at the New York Society for Ethical Culture and are thinking about how to make dances more ethically and how this grows more sustainable social ecologies.
(Photo by Maria Pisareva)
