Simone Forti: "Solo No. 1" (1974). image copyright Simone Forti, courtesy of Video Data Bank, Chicago

Simone Forti (Italy, USA *1935)

Adopting the movements of various animals Simone Forti begins the performance by walking hypnotically in circles. She falls to the floor and begins a cycle of walking and crawling that becomes an open metaphor for evolution and aging. Through the course of the performance, the camera follows Forti's circling motion at increasingly close range, creating an interactive dance between camera and performer. While 'rustic' in respect to the quality of the video image and sound, "Solo No. 1" serves as an engaging document of Simone Forti's dedicated study of natural movement.

Simone Forti came of age in the 1950s and 1960s and developed out of two main influences: dance improvisation which she studied with Anna Halprin, and the legendary Judson Dance Theater that revolutionized modern dance in New York at a historical moment of dialogue between artists, musicians, poets and dancers. From her early minimalist dance-constructions, through her animal movement studies, land portraits and news animations, Simone Forti has had a seminal influence on her field. For the past two decades she has been developing "Logomotion", an improvisational dance/narrative form.