Terpsichore is part of The Anesthesia Quartet, a collection of four video works by John Sanborn. The works explore the formation of self - the concepts that tie us to an idea of self and the everyday challenges we must face to maintain a sense of self. The works express self as both a fragile construct requiring constant work and a powerful structure through which to navigate and process the world.
As we drift away from our innate connection to nature, putting our faith in robots and a “post-human” future, one wonders how we will find salvation on short notice. A tree planted 20 years ago will today be taller than any being that planted it, and will eventually survive every single soul.
This work proves there is hope in a alliance of body and landscape. It embraces getting lost in the minimalism of being alive as exemplified by a palindrome of gesture. Redemption is just a few keystrokes away - starting with an imprint of duality followed by tracing the ritual of human repetition.
As we listen to music, the brain allocates resources usually taken up by basic sensory processes to strengthen connectivity in other networks that are responsible for emotion processing and integration of information.
When we watch a body in motion, we respect the laws of gravity as we connect with our base instincts of fight or flight. What we think and what we feel are fused by the singularity of gesture.
- John Sanborn
