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Arts & Communication Digital somatic arts: Choreographing autonomy

While Germain’s approach was initially rooted in PaR, fostering internal authority and autonomy play a key role
in this collaborative process, Choinière found that her in participants’ transformative experiences. Nevertheless,
approach shifted toward “research-creation.” This is in this hypothesis would require further validation through
the sense that, as she is also an artist, she puts herself in more rigorous, controlled studies that she hopes to realize
a position of creative experimentation to collaborate with in a possible future graduate project or collaboration with
her students, exploring and adapting her lessons to the a research center.
“phenomenal reality” associated with video conferencing. In her search for similar studies on somatics and
Phenomenal reality, for the artist and anyone immersed distance learning, she explored the relevant literature
in the experience, is, above all, felt and experienced extensively throughout the summer and autumn of 2023.
by the body. It is also the participation in the positive While there are numerous articles focusing on distance
phenomenon of self-complexification, which corresponds, education in dance and choreography, there is a noticeable
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in large part, to the modification of internal cartography. lack of research that specifically addresses somatic practices
Recently, through her involvement in academia and in online environments (Appendix 1).
research, and particularly through this project, she has
added a reflective and critical dimension to her practice. The methodologies we have used are of two types. The
Here, the notion of positive self-complexification has been methodology Germain uses in her Feldenkrais practice with
developed in the context of research on the mutation and students is that of the International Feldenkrais Federation.
sensory-perceptual destabilization of the body while in The International Feldenkrais Federation comprises 26
contact with a technological environment. 17,18 It is not in Feldenkrais associations from various regions worldwide,
tension or contradiction with the notion of simplicity that four training accreditation boards, and the Feldenkrais
is emphasized in Feldenkrais practice. We will explore family. Its member organizations collectively represent
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this notion of positive self-complexification and the more than 5,000 practitioners. On the other hand, the
modification of internal mapping in the following sections. methodology proposed by Choinière, which interrelates
practice (additional experiments we conducted) and
We would also like to point out that this case study is theory (the writing of this scientific article), is one she
preliminary and has its limitations. However, given the created and tested during her postdoctorate (awarded
unprecedented results we were able to observe, many FRQSC 2017–19 in research-creation) at the Université du
experts in the field have encouraged us to share these initial Québec à Montréal (UQÀM). Several universities around
findings in this scientific article. According to Germain, the world have studied this methodology. It is used in
this is her case study in teaching somatics online since graduate studies (master’s, doctorate, and postdoctorate),
March 2020. The sample size of this case study included 30 notably, but not exclusively, in the doctoral program in art
students (15 men and 15 women), all taught individually. studies and practices (Doctoral en Études et Pratiques des
They included: Arts) at UQÀM, at Laval University as part of experimental
(i) Thirteen performance artists (nine women and four co-teaching seminars, and at the University of Bologna in
men) from dance, circus, high-level sport, and singing Bologna, Italy. Her methodology has also been published
(43%), aged 23–75-years-old in a book she directed, of which she is the principal
(ii) Ten individuals (three women and seven men) coming author. This pedagogical tool is entitled Through the Prism
for rehab and/or to support their training (33%), aged of the Senses: Mediation and New Realities of the Body in
33 – 80-years-old the Performing Arts. Technology, Cognition and Emerging
(iii) Two female artists, a graphic designer and a famous Research-Creation Methodologies, and is published by
landscape architect (7%), aged 60 – 70-years-old Presses de l’Université du Québec, Collection Esthétique
(iv) Three individuals (one woman and two men) whose (Canada) and Intellect Books (United Kingdom)/The
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nervous system was severely affected (10%), aged 55 – University of Chicago Press Books (United States). The
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65 years old local, national, and international reception of this work
(v) Two men with posture-related issues (7%), aged 58 – and its associated methodology can be consulted on the
65 years old. website (https://www.intellectbooks.com/through-the-

This study is qualitative in nature, and while anecdotal prism-of-the-senses) in the Reviews section.
evidence from Germain’s peers, as well as students and 2. Moshe Feldenkrais and his interest in
teachers in the field of somatics, aligns with the observed
improvements, these findings remain preliminary. science
Germain’s ongoing work, particularly with new students While the beginning of Moshe Feldenkrais’s method has
encountered online, continues to reinforce the idea that been dated back to the 1940s, Feldenkrais practitioner

Volume 3 Issue 3 (2025) 3 doi: 10.36922/ac.4477