Author: Ezra Dickinson

Mother Quilt (2013)

(2013) quilt created for the performance of Mother for you I made this.

 

Sourcing ideas and imagery from my childhood of wanting to be able to wrap myself in my mother’s arms turned into creating a portrait of my mother and sewing that into a quilt that I could wrap myself in. This was the first quilt I have ever made, but was definitely not my last. I used four 3’x5’ tiled sections of photographic fabric to create this 5’x7’ portrait of my mother Kathryn. 
 

Photo Anthony Rigano

Velocity Bash, Photo Jim Colman

Rainbow and Kris’ Quilt (2013)

(2013) wedding quilt

 

Initially I was asked to create a backdrop for wedding attendees to use for taking photographs. I couldn’t just make something that was going to only have one use, so the backdrop turned into a wedding quilt gift complete with a portrait of the bride and groom. This was my second quilt of the year, but by far the most complicated sewing project I have ever undertaken. The size is 10’x7’ and is built from eleven different colors cut and stitched down piece by piece.

 

Mother for you I made this (2013) film

(2013) Film (related to Mother… Performance)

 

Stand alone video documentation from the performance and audience experience of Mother for you I made this (2013)
Fillmed by Ryan Adams and Jocob Rosen. Edited by Ryan Adams. 

 

(2019) Film screening with post-screening Q&A, radio interview. North Star Ballet, Fairbanks AK
(2015) Film screening, ArtEast, Issaquah WA
(2015) Film screening. TEDX Adventure, Seattle Art Museum, Seattle WA
(2014) Cornishʼs Our Creative Society, Seattle, WA
(2014) TEDX Rainier, Macaw Hall, Seattle WA
(2014) Film Screening, Fidalgo DanceWorks, Anacortes, WA

Mother for you I made this (2013)

(2013) Performance Premiere

 

Part performance and part activism, Mother for you I made this is aimed at activating a conversation about the failed mental health care system in America through memories of my childhood as I lived with and unknowingly cared for my schizophrenic mother. This hour-long solo is built from a series of performances I made as gifts for my mother over a seven year period.
Audiences were guided through forgotten public spaces by ushers and given a personal audio sound score composed by Paurl Walsh. Weaving conversations between myself and my mother with sounds from the actual landscape.
Mother for you I made this was commissioned and produced through Velocity Dance Center‘s Made in Seattle dance development program with support from 4Culture, ArtsFund, and the Seattle Office of Arts & Culture.

 

Collaborator credits: 
Paurl Walsh Sound/composition. 
Christopher Stewart Sound Tech. 
Christian Swacker Stage manager. 
Kim Lusk Tech Director.

Mother TEDX Rainer:

Tonya Lockyer + Ezra Dickinson TEDX Talk Macaw Hall 2014

Gifts for my mother, interview with Ezra at TEDX

Mother press reviews:

Seattle Dances: Ezra Dickinson Quietly Provokes

Seattle Star: The Art of Changing How We Talk About Mental Disorders

Seattle Times: Haunting look at mental illness, laid bare on the streets

City Arts: Ezra Dickinson Triumph and Tribute

The 12th Avenue Project: EZRA DICKINSON DANCES A DUET WITH SEATTLE

The Stranger: No Two Performances Will Be the Same

Mother press quotes:

Seattle Dance Annual: Reviewers recall highlights of 2013

Mother press preview/interview links:

The Stranger: Q&A with Ezra Dickinson
Seattle Met: A Fiendish Conversation with Ezra Dickinson
Kiro Radio: In “Mother For You I Made This,” a Seattle Dancer Finds a Stage in the Streets
KUOW Interview: Weekday & Weekday With Steve Scher (Interview starts at 38:30)
Seattle Channel: Art Zone with Nancy Guppy (Interview starts at 6:30)

Mother press photo essay of performance:

City Arts: Ezra Dickinson Takes to the Streets with an Emotional Tribute to His Mother

 

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Photo Dan Hawkins

Photo Tim Summers

Photo Dan Hawkins

Mother performance excerpts:

Pacific Northwest Performance Platform. APAP, Gibney Dance, NYC. (2019)
For this showcase I chose to perform the section from “Mother” where I wrap a 150’ foot block printed cloth poem, pulled from my stomach around a grove of trees, in this showing I asked audience members to stand onstage in place of trees as I wrapped the length of the poem around and in between them. I was quite pleased with the result, as the length of the cloth poem filled the stage to complete capacity and used the space and the audience in a way that no other performers did during the showing.
Velocity Bash. Velocity Dance Center, Seattle WA (2019)

 

Pacific Northwest Performance Platform. APAP, Gibney Dance, NYC. (2018) 
The Incredible Intensity of Just Being Human exhibition. City hall, Seattle WA (2015)

 

The Incredible Intensity of Just Being Human exhibition. Highline College, Dem Moines WA (2015)

TEDX Rainier. Macaw Hall, Seattle WA (2014)
“My”. Art Share. Centennial Hall, Sitka AK (2005)
“My”. Cornish Benefit Concert. Poncho Theatre, Seattle WA (2005)
“My”. 12 Minutes Max. On The Boards, Seattle WA (2005)

projects: Benjamin Maestas

projects: Benjamin Maestas

 

A Meeting (2013) Choreographed by Benjamin Maestas as part of his thesis project for his masters in Architecture from the University of Washington. This short film also had a live performance component that showcased Benjamin’s ideas in alternative forms of shelter that could be used to house the homeless. This short was filmed and edited by Doug Arney.

 

USA Flag/pool (2013)

(2013) spray paint set piece 

 

Commissioned by Spectrum Dance Theatre and Donald Byrd for his work A CRUEL NEW WORLD/the new normal. I had never drawn or painted the American flag before this and probably never will after. I was happy that when I did find myself creating this set piece, it was to help represent America in performance for what it is, a land known for taking advantage of the less fortunate. I greatly respect Donald for his activism through dance and performance, it was a privilege to create this work for him.

 

Yes (2013) film

(2013) film collaboration with musician

 

I have collected hundreds of short stop motion animations since I started exploring stop motion in 2005. My aim was first to explore movement, environment, light, texture and eventually sound. This is the first, in a way culmination of these experiments. I met Rulon Brown and asked him if he would be interested in composing a little score for this short animation. I love this short animation, there are no expectations, just a moment of creativity, alive with ambiguous meaning. If you are a creator of sounds and would like to create a score for one of these animations, I have a whole basket of works yet to be paired with sounds. Send me an email: baldmanwatching@yahoo.com and let’s get this collaboration happening.

 

projects: Murphy/Lachow

Megan Murphy /Murphy/lachow Company

 

Falling and Being Caught. (2016)

 

Dancer and movement collaborator
Performances:
Northwest New Works Festival, On The Boards, Seattle WA

 

 

The Man Who Can Forget Anything. (2013-14)

 

Dancer and movement collaborator
Performances:
On The Boards, Seattle WA (premier)

 

projects: Tahni Holt

Tahni Holt 

 

Duet Love (2013-2015)

 

Dancer and movement collaborator
Performances:
PICA TBA, Imago Theatre, Portland OR (premier)
Diverse Works, Houston TX
Velocity Dance Center, Seattle WA

 

photo Lynn Lang

Velocity Bald (2012)

(2012) Mural, Velocity’s Fall Kick-Off, Velocity Dance Center, Seattle WA.

 

Mural painted live as part of Velocity’s Fall Kick-Off. This mural lines the walls of the entryway into Velocity when attending a performance. Designed and painted on the spot, this mural took about eight hours to paint. 

 

 

In 2018 repairs and slight changes were added as Velocity was refurbishing their performance space.