Feet off the ground.
Feet off the Ground facilitated a workshop for local Greenham Women to interrogate themes from their work at Greenham, and inform the creative process.
Our artist development programme supports a variety of individuals and groups to develop their art practice. In April 2022, we welcomed ‘Feet off the Ground’ to our Halifax based studio space.
Who is Feet off the Ground (FOTG)?
Feet off the Ground is a female-led contemporary dance collective making engaging and physical work rooted in contact work, connection and collaboration. The core collective is made up of dance artists, Lucia, Robyn, Sophie and Patricia who work in a democratic, non-hierarchical way, sharing responsibilities equally.
What did FOTG work on at IOU?
They created a new performance that explores climate change as a feminist issue and calls for action. Supported by Greenham Women Everywhere, Feet off the Ground facilitated a workshop for local Greenham Women to interrogate themes from their work at Greenham and inform the creative process.
The workshop spanned five days and went through a process of consultation with the Greenham Women Everywhere group about their experiences, feelings, memories of Greenham Common.
Greenham Women Everywhere’s aim is to collate and preserve the archive of protest at Greenham and keep alive its extraordinary achievement. Feet Off The Ground’s work, was to create a contemporary dance piece to reflecte this, and as become one of the ways to achieve Greenham Women’s aim in 2022.
The performance created at IOU took place on a revolving stage and fused contemporary dance, contact improvisation, spoken word and music.
‘Having had the studio quiet for so long (covid) it’s hard to explain the buzz that comes with having practicing artists in our space again. Part of what we do at IOU is promote, support and exhibit the work of artists from the UK and beyond, so having a group of vibrant, energetic creative people working in the studio again, is a breath of fresh air.’
David Wheeler, Artistic Director
During rehearsals there were times when the mood was somber, reflective and thoughtful. Other times, loud, energetic and joyful. Works that use human experience as a springboard, are always both exhilarating and unpredictable, joyful and intense, and this workshop was no different.
Special thanks for the wonderful team Feet off the Ground, for their kind words shared with us as they left.
