Prosoche. An aesthetic experience of dance

PROSOCHE. AN AESTHETIC EXPERIENCE OF DANCE. “The mind is like a vessel filled with water, and impressions are like a ray of light that falls upon the water. If the water is disturbed, the ray will seem to be disturbed likewise, though, in reality, it is not. Whenever, therefore, a human is seized with vertigo, it is not the arts and virtues that are confounded, but the mid-state in which they exist; and, if this comes to rest, so will they likewise” Epictetus "Prosoche" is the maintained attention that guides the creation, attention focused on the moment and the connection. Decisive moments, a progression of instants and captures of relationship in the process of creation that will become a complete work in permanent transformation. "Prosoche" is the term used in Stoic philosophy to refer to the attitude and constant practice at each instant, with constantly renewed attention (prosokhe) to one's self and to the present moment. I do not think there is an instant more decisive or fleeting than a moment underwater. With Henri Cartier-Bresson in mind, this photo essay constitutes a collection of different "decisive moments" in progression. It is a confluence between two decisive instants of creation: dance and photography. Underwater dance perfectly materializes the representation of prosoche, the only mental state where creation is possible. Thus, the dance with its perfect forms could well symbolize all the arts, and therefore, the potentiality of creation and the infinite possibilities that the creative process entails As Philippe Halsman's "Jump Portraits" sought to show the essential personality of the portrayed individuals, without them wearing a social mask, underwater dance enables the capture of this authenticity in a different way. The inability to simulate underwater - as in the surrealistic jumps - makes people lose any social or interpretive mask, showing their most personal movements, and universal emotions. The prosoche is obtained with the conjunction of discipline, training, and effort, giving way to a state of mind that enables moments of creation, an optimal state. Observing works with attention - that is with "Prosoche" - grants the observer a mental state from where "everything is possible"; it is a gateway to the infinite possibilities of creation.