CONCEPT AND CHOREOGRAPHY: Simona Deaconescu, Vanessa Goodman

PERFORMERS: Simona Dabija, Maria Luiza Dimulescu

ARTISTIC CONSULTANTS: Olivia Nițiș, Marta de Menezes

MUSIC: Monocube

OBJECT DESIGN: Ciprian Ciuclea

TECHNICAL DIRECTOR: Hermina Stanciulescu

PRODUCTION DESIGN: Diana Miroșu

CO-PRODUCERS: Tangaj Collective, Action at a Distance, The National Center for Dance Bucharest

PHOTOS: Markos Tamas, Torok Attila, Teodora Simova, Charly Akakpo, Alina Usurelu

Simona Deaconescu and Vanessa Goodman work across performance, installation, and film, exploring how bodies respond to social, ecological and technological systems. Their collaboration connects Eastern Europe and the Pacific Northwest through research-driven, interdisciplinary creation. Simona investigates the politics of the body and shifting social constructs, while Vanessa explores the links between movement, sound and environment. Their joint work, BLOT—Body Line of Thought, has toured extensively across Europe and North America, and the two artists are now developing their second collaboration, set to premiere in spring 2027.

This presentation of "BLOT-Body Line of Thought" is part of "Extended Bodies. Performative Routes", a cultural project co-funded by the Administration of the National Cultural Fund. The project does not necessarily represent the position of the Administration of the National Cultural Fund. AFCN is not responsible for the project’s content or how the project results can be used. These are entirely the responsibility of the beneficiary of the financing.

Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor EACEA can be held responsible for them.

Vanessa Goodman's participation supported by the Province of British Columbia, Canada through the British Columbia Arts Council.

BLOT, acronym of Body Line Of Thought, is undoubtedly the most emblematic performance of the 2023 edition of Antistatic. The almost hypnotic dance of the performers, whose movements are at times fragmented, at times very fluid, makes it easy to see in detail how their muscles contract and release, how their breathing expands their diaphragms, or how the impulses flow through their limbs and spines. In this case nudity is simply taken as a scientific necessity, as the measurement tools the dancers wear highlight. I see BLOT as an opportunity to be guided by two performative bodies through a personal line of thoughts (as the title suggests), triggered by explanations about biology, which are therefore connected with ourselves.

Marta Bugio, New Dramaturgies Magazine,  Article

It stood out as a captivating exploration of the complex nature of human identity. At first glance, the performance appears to revolve around the human body and its connection with biology, a perception reinforced by the nudity of the two female performers. As the performance unfolded, however, it became clear that BLOT went deeper, revealing the intricacies of each individual's unique microbial footprint and the symbiotic relationship we share with bacteria. By blending elements of lecture, choreographic research, and installation that incorporate salt, bacteria video projection, the performance delves into the themes of the human experience, exploring its functionality and challenging conventional notions of identity.

Elena Angelova, Scenart Magazine, Article

The perfect choreographic and performance work creates a complete and convincing stage world. On the sterile white stage with a white backdrop, a "body line of thought" is projected, exhibiting a state of consciousness at a specific moment in time. The setting is laboratory-like, creating a sense of a surreal painting that visualizes processes within subjective consciousness. In this setting, the conscious bodies of the two dancing girls, Simona Dabija and Maria Luiza Dimulescu, are situated. These bodies are devoid of eroticism and somewhat "disembodied," present solely to illustrate a "line of thought." The choreography is supported by set design and music, which with measured precision make the thought tangible and visually impactful.

Mila Iskrenova, Culture Centre, Article

In BLOT the body itself becomes a stage for a porous process of negotiation between skin and senses, the salt in our sweat and the microbes in our gut. [...] The two nude performers are not eroticised; their bodies are systems and materials to be explored. A mountain of salt looms in the background. A screen shows cultures of bacteria growing on agar plates, like microscopic countries expanding their borders on an empty map.[...] The performers move around the stage in solitude, but the rare touches leave a lasting impression, showing how identity and self leak beyond skin. BLOT leaves us with the quiet, destabilising awareness that to be human is to be plural, between sweat and breath, with the bacteria constantly growing and moving to the passing rhythms of time.

Marína Srnka, Springback Magazine, Article

Simona Dabija and Maria Luiza Dimulescu command the space. With deadpan expressions and rigorously choreographed gestures, their bodies are entirely exposed save for microphone packs taped to their arms. Salt slowly trickles down from a bag above the stage, creating a pyramid on the floor. One of the performers takes a camera and zooms in on a petri-dish on stage. In these simple images, poetry meets science. What the image actually shows is bacteria from the performers’ bodies. The work never points to female vulnerability; intriguingly, the more they speak of human biology, the more severed from it they appear. The effect is unsettling: naked bodies that begin to read like costumes– skinsuits hovering on the edge of the uncanny valley– even as we know they are as human as anyone in the audience, down to the smallest microbe.

Ingeborg Zackariassen, Beyond Front: Bridging Perifery, Article

Part conference presentation, part movement research, performers Simona Dabija and Maria-Luiza Dimulescu’s movements are hypnotically strange, bound, and specific. Each breath is made visible with a controlled stomach wave. We see soft bellies flow, expand, and contract in a constant everyday movement we each know so well, but so seldom see nakedly on others. [...] The performers’ nudity allows us to see the complexity of their movements, though as they remind us, they are not naked: their skin is layered with microorganisms. Points on the body; right inner elbow, left mid-thigh, sternum; glide, stop, turn, and swivel, as if they are computerized router bits on a cutting machine.

Leah Crosby, Seattle Dances, Article