Duet in Art

For Tulisan’s collection, titled ‘PULSAR DANCE’, our founding artist Melissa Sunjaya worked a long way to visualize an emotional connection between mankind and the planet Earth.

From the start, she had imagined this concept to be expressed through a contemporary body exploration. Contemporary dance was a foreign discipline for her. Furthermore, learning this skill at 42 years of age was not an easy start.

Her essay stated her point of view that everything was possible in this universe and even chaos could open up new pathways for potential. So despite any technical disadvantage that she may have, she began studying contemporary dance with a professional dancer & choreographer, Davit Fitrik.

‘Pulsar Dance’ showcased a collaboration of two artists from contrasting creative disciplines and different skill levels, in performing art and visual art. In this duet, the two artists were challenged to synchronize their languages into a poetic movement conveying the relationship between human and mother Earth.

It took almost 8 months of strict diet and intensive physical training for Melissa to condition her body for this challenge. It was important for her to be able to balance Davit’s 20 years experience as a professional dancer. In turn, Davit also submersed himself in Melissa’s essay, ‘Pulsar Dance’, with all its visual interpretation. 

It was important to understand that the goal was never to match one another in capacity, but to convey a symbiosis of trust and complementing potentials. This was the essence of the collaboration. This perspective should ideally be the shape of human bond to his habitat.

Davit is certain that it is not easy to be a dancer or an artist. “We cannot only copy a movement or a drawing, we have to first understand the substance that we want to express. As a dancer, I have to be aware of the mechanics of my own body and the energy source of every movement. The dynamic projection has to come from the soul”, Davit explained.

Davit Fitrik established his own dance academy, Sound of Movement (SOM), located in Ruko Emerald Boulevard Blok CE/A1 no 6, Bintaro sektor 9, Tangerang 15227. He has performed in several international dance repertoires. Next Sunday, 26 February 2017, SOM will present a recital in Taman Ismail Marzuki at 19:00. Tickets are available for sale through contacting: Audrey at 082123385566

Instagram: @mytulisan
Facebook: Tulisan
Twitter: @mytulisan
Youtube Channel: Tulisan Jakarta

Text by Zharfani Padmasedhana
Photography by Krishni Swandayani

Tulisan Chronicles Team