In this book, the dancer Steve Paxton traces a lifetime in the company of gravity. The memory of his first flight, a meditation on walking, pondering on the conditions of life, and a dream of dancing make up pieces of a puzzle. He reveals the physical force that is affecting each of us and underpins our personal stories. Paxton muses about the limit of his consciousness and celebrates the potentiality of our senses to enter the dance. Gravity is the first book by Steve Paxton, a major international dancer, choreographer and teacher. Throughout his 55-year career, he has researched the fiction of cultured dance and the “truth” of improvisation.

Extracts:

« Birth is not so much a beginning as it is an abrupt change in which suddenly there are different factors than those in the womb, and there is gravity. With gravity, a new negotiation begins, and these terms condition us for the rest of our lives. » [pg 3]

« I once saw a pig jump into the air, turn a full circle, and land facing the original direction, then scamper around its pen like a mad thing. Whatever primal survival urge, or mating display (another pig was watching) provoked this, I don’t know. But it was so outside the pig-movement norm that it looked improvised. » [pg 25]

« Most of us walk around in a split universe, the sensorial one in which the sun rises, and the rational one in which the earth turns. Meanwhile, we will forget that the moon does rise. It is a quandary for the senses, which cannot tell the difference, and a success for the rational mind, which can. » [pg 41]

About the publication:

«Gravity is a fragmented and lyrical rumination on its central theme: gravity and the human relationship to it. Its arc is one of autobiography and reflection. Paxton begins with birth, works his way through childhood experiences, and, for the majority of the book, reflects on his life’s work as a dancer. Conversely, the book has an open quality wherein you can jump to any page, as in a book of poetry.(…)» — Back to Earth Again and Again, by Andrew Sargus Klein (thinkingdance.net)

Also published by Contredanse Editions:

You can also find Gravity Audiobook (original English version read by the author), its version on a beautiful collector vinyl, its French translation La gravité and the WEB-APP : Material for the Spine – a study of movement by Steve Paxton on www.materialforthespine.com.