David Gordon donates archive and collaborates with The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts in an exploration of artist annotated collection methodology; Process gleans new performance works
January 7, 2016 -- Choreographer and director David Gordon is donating his complete archives to The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts at Lincoln Center. As part of an innovative collaborative acquisition process, the Library will launch a series of workshop performances of Gordon’s LIVE ARCHIVEOGRAPHY (funded by a National Dance Project Production Grant), beginning in January and continuing throughout 2016.
"I am a great admirer of David Gordon's work, and followed his career with great anticipation and sheer joy," said Jacqueline Z. Davis, Barbara G. and Lawrence A. Fleischman Executive Director of The Library for the Performing Arts. "This acquisition is an extraordinary addition to the Library's collection and it has been thrilling to see the inspiration he has drawn from the process."
Said Gordon: "I view this ‘archival process’ as an adjunct ‘creative process’ & I don’t have, & I won’t have, answers to all questions about form until some amount of experiment occurs relative to the experiments it took to make the work I made. In dance research, frequently, the voice of dancer/choreographer is not heard but at least as long as I am here to facilitate, my history can be lively dialogue between multiple viewpoints of past & present & aesthetics & economics & politics & performers & creator whenever possible rather than one artist’s disintegrating paper trail.”
LIVE ARCHIVEOGRAPHY is a reconsideration of conventional archival methodology, and the process of compiling and organizing an archive of movement and theater art from a career spanning five decades. Through live performance, narration, and media display, Gordon reexamines the artifacts of his past projects, uncovering the intense relationship between his family life and his work. The first installment of LIVE ARCHIVEOGRAPHY will take place at The Library for the Performing Arts' Bruno Walter Auditorium on January 21, with subsequent installments on January 28 and April 28. These workshop performances are free and open to the public. For more details and to reserve tickets, visit nypl.org/lpa/events.
On February 8, The Library for the Performing Arts will screen a 2011 performance of Gordon’s Dancing Henry Five, based on Henry V by William Shakespeare. Gordon will be joined by cast members including Valda Setterfield and Karen Graham, along with producer Alyce Dissette, original commissioning presenter for Danspace Project Laurie Uprichard, and Jedediah Wheeler, Executive Director of Peak Performances at Montclair State University, where the 2011 performance was recorded.
After this two plus year process in collaboration with the Pick Up Performance Co(s), David Gordon’s annotated archive will be available at The Library for the Performing Arts’ Jerome Robbins Dance Division and at www.davidgordon.nyc. 111 digital master copies of Gordon performances are already accessible through the Library’s Digital Collections.
LIVE ARCHIVEOGRAPHY was made possible by the New England Foundation for the Arts' National Dance Project, with lead funding from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation and The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, with additional support from the National Endowment for the Arts.
PRESS CONTACT:
Nora Lyons | noralyons [at] nypl [dot] org
About The New York Public Library For The Performing Arts, Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center
The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts houses one of the world’s most extensive combinations of circulating, reference, and rare archival collections in its field. These materials are available free of charge, along with a wide range of special programs, including exhibitions, seminars, and performances. An essential resource for everyone with an interest in the arts — whether professional or amateur — the Library is known particularly for its prodigious collections of non-book materials such as historic recordings, videotapes, autograph manuscripts, correspondence, sheet music, stage designs, press clippings, programs, posters, and photographs. The Library is part of The New York Public Library system, which has 90 locations in the Bronx, Manhattan, and Staten Island, and is a lead provider of free education for all.