Whilst trying to accumulate my ideas and attempting to put them into some sort of a concept, I came across a performance artist named Lindsey Stirling.  She is a violinist who dances whilst playing, creating original music.

A contemporary twist on a traditional art form.

The aspects of her work that interest me the most are:

*Her use of shadows

*Her use of light and dark

*Her settings – elaborate and thematic

*To let the music do the talking – powerful imagery

*The beauty of the composition

Links to two of my favourite pieces.  The first is actually the first video I came across of her work.  Called Shadows it plays with the self and the shadow of the self, playing with synchronicity, cannonising movements between herself and the shadow and playing with the humour this creates when both fall out of the pattern. In a way this reminds me of the story of Peter Pan and his shadow that returns to this idea of the power of the imagination, the depths and inhibitions of the mind, the subconscious.

Earth. Air. Water. Fire. The 4 Elements. What attracted me to this video was her use of these 4 elements. All were imagistic, dancing in the rain, being surrounded by the wind, hot-footing the fire and gracing the earth.

 Imagination. Imagery. Illusion. Ideality.

References:

Fanpop (undated) Lindsey Stirling. [online] Available from http://www.fanpop.com/clubs/music/images/33546505/title/lindsey-stirling-photo [Accessed 3 March 2014].

Lindsey Stirling (2012) Shadows – Lindsey Stirling (Original Song).  [online video] Available from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JGCsyshUU-A [Accessed 22 February 2014].

Lindsey Stirling (2012) Song of the Caged Bird.  [online video] Canada: Lindsey Stirling.  Available from http://lindseystirling.ca/videos/page/3/ [Accessed 3 March 2014].

Lindsey Stirling (2012) Elements – Lindsey Stirling (Dubstep Violin Original). [online video] Available from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sf6LD2B_kDQ [Accessed 3 March 2014].