Dancing with the Museum was launched in 2016, a collaboration with Ruth Clarke Inclusion Associate, and her colleagues at the Fitzwilliam Museum, and colleagues and residents from the Cambridge City Sheltered Housing Schemes, and Independent Living Service.
The project was initially sparked by a vision of wanting a wider representation of Cambridge city residents to comfortably experience the rich and sumptuous museum space. Not only that, but to experience the museum through a different arts medium – Dance. By exploring together, calibrating experiences, and calling upon constant reflection, a robust programme has grown.
We share our understanding and appreciation of artworks through a process of embodied looking, moving slowly and in a relaxed way. We source the dynamics of the artworks, and often take these into simple and beautiful movement sequences, developing new and previously unimagined dance skills. Valuing a creative and personal understanding of the art has given us a richness of wellbeing, and a sense of belonging – not only to the museum, but to an important – and growing – network. We share, we express, and we continue to bring new and exciting ideas into our lives through the programme.
Such a release, I’ve got so much inside that wants to come out…it makes real sense of the Museum, it’s no longer a place of static statues.
Founder participant
https://www.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/news/relax-look-and-imagine-new-film-series
Dancing at the Fitzwilliam Museum
How We Feel. A ‘Dancing with the Museum’ film