PERFORMING PARENTHOOD 2017 OFFICIAL SELECTION:
Rachel Jane Dean (UK, Leeds)
Nativity (2014)
Filmed Performance
ARTIST STATEMENT:
“Nativity came out of my fascination with the enduring power of the myth and magic of the Virgin Mary. I worked with film maker Lucy Barker to make the film when I was seven months pregnant, recording this ephemeral time. It juxtaposes the symbolic, rarefied holy image with the physical reality of pregnancy and birth. It has a naiveté springing from both the subject matter and my own early stage in the journey of parenthood.
I’m a dance artist combining making, teaching and performing. I have a 2 year old daughter Iris and throughout my pregnancy I continued my dance practice, adapting it as my body changed. Since the creation of Nativity and Iris’ birth a long-term project has begun investigating how my dance practice can continue with my daughter and be led by my interaction with her. This has included several live performances from when she was a few weeks old.”
Rachel Dean is a contemporary dance artist who choreographs, performs and teaches. She graduated from Northern School of Contemporary Dance in 2006 and in 2013 completed an MA Creative Practice (Dance Professional Pathway) at Laban and Independent Dance.