GBH Openvault

New Television Workshop; Watermotor for Dancer and Camera

Part of New Television Workshop.

In "Watermotor for Dancer and Camera," Trisha Brown executes a solo in slow motion. Video artist Peter Campus did the camera work. In the editing two takes -- one from the front and one from the side -- were slow-motioned and superimposed. The superimposition was done "on the fly" bringing one or the other take to more prominence as it went along. "Watermotor for Dancer and Camera" was originally created for "Frames of Reference: Dancing on the Edge" and appears as a segment in that work. It also appears in "Alive From Off Center: Solos, Duets, and Pizza," a dance special. Approximate date: 1980

Series

New Television Workshop

Title

Watermotor for Dancer and Camera

Series Description

The New Television Workshop originated at WGBH in 1974 to support the creation and development of experimental video art. This experimental programming included dance, drama, music, performance and visual arts on video and film. As early as 1968, WGBH was committed to the development of video art through residency programs, with artists such as Nam June Paik. Many of these early works (pre-1974) were broadcast both locally and nationally. Fred Barzyk, a WGBH producer and director, was the Workshop's Executive Director from 1974 to 1982. Susan Dowling was Executive Director from 1982 to 1993. In 1993 the Workshop ceased production at WGBH. Major broadcast series created by the Workshop included "Artist's Showcase," "Frames of Reference," "Dance for Camera," "Poetry Breaks," and "New Television." Individual works were created for "Visions," a series produced by WNET (New York), and "Alive From Off Center," a series produced by KTCA (St. Paul - Minneapolis). The Contemporary Art Television (CAT) Fund was co-founded by the Workshop and Boston's Institute for Contemporary Art (ICA) in the 1980's, to commission works by video artists. Series release date: 1974

Asset Type

Clip

Media Type

Video

Subjects

Modern dance

Brown, Trisha, 1936-

Dance--Production and direction

Dance

Topics

Film and Television

Creators

Dowling, Susan (Series Producer)

Publication Information

WGBH Educational Foundation

Citation

Chicago: “New Television Workshop; Watermotor for Dancer and Camera,” GBH Archives, accessed December 22, 2024, http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/V_2392F3C9EB024363A7F1138C08444CC1.

MLA: “New Television Workshop; Watermotor for Dancer and Camera.” GBH Archives. Web. December 22, 2024. <http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/V_2392F3C9EB024363A7F1138C08444CC1>.

APA: New Television Workshop; Watermotor for Dancer and Camera. Boston, MA: GBH Archives. Retrieved from http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/V_2392F3C9EB024363A7F1138C08444CC1