David Gordon constructs dances. In the videos below, he reads from two of five artist statements he contributed to Center publication The Sentient Archive: Bodies, Performance, and Memory, which gathers the work of artists and cultural practitioners in dance, architecture, science, and the visual arts with essays that cross boundaries within and between disciplines, and illustrate how the body serves as a repository for knowledge.
Gordon's plain—and practical—approach to text reveals the internal and constant transformation of the artist’s mind. He takes us inside a creative practice that repurposes time, making something new from what has gone before, making performance from the lives of others as well as from his own.
Gordon reads from “I Know That Person, I Am That Dancer.”
Gordon reads from “One Artist’s Disintegrating Paper Trail.”
David Gordon (1936–2022) was a choreographer, dancer, writer, and director based in New York City. Gordon contributed five artist statements to Center publication The Sentient Archive: Bodies, Performance, and Memory, a collection of essays that illustrate how the body serves as a repository for knowledge. In 2020, Gordon created The Philadelphia Matter - 1972/2020, a Center-supported dance piece presented by Christ Church Preservation Trust.