Smartphones and their advanced cameras have made us accustomed to capturing or recording anything around us. As a choreographer, Eka’s drive to take pictures comes from dances, particularly the Gong Dayak Kenyah dance, one closely related to her own body and dancing experience. Since 2016, Eka has been researching the history, kinesthetic elements, mythology, and aura of this specific dance. In her research process, she observes pictures of the Gong Dayak Kenyah dance, taken by herself and her collaborators. She then found particular characteristics in the form of personal tastes, feelings, perspectives, even aesthetic and ethical considerations from the photographer’s gaze on the Gong Dayak Kenyah dance. The experience makes them feel as if there is an invisible guide that controls the angle and view of the camera lens.

Through the choreography work in “Pesona”, Eka experiments with exchanging various perspectives and rereading the characteristic elements that also influence the visual sense of pictures taken of the Gong Dayak Kenyah dance.

Choreographer: Eka Wahyuni | Collaborators: Azwar Ahmad, Melynda Adriani, Primadana Affandi, Wendy Pratama | Music by: Whansetiyawan | Lighting designer: Yonek D. Nugraha | Brainstorming partner: Linda Mayasari | Trial support: Movement Lab, Proyek Edisi, Temu Seni Tari | Technical trial support: Pahlawan Chaniago, Riski Rianda, Taufik Ivan (Pendukung Teknis Uji Coba)