Brief

Nicole Katz

While finding inspiration for this piece, we viewed many videos on traditional Chinese dragon dancing and the way the dragons moved. We also searched up art pieces and industrial uses of folding and hinges. The Accordion is a foldable, two-person wearable, that is made of different shapes of wood, mirror, and orange acrylic. All of the shapes are weaved together with strong shoe-lace like string, that helps the pieces stay in place while folding and moving. The heart and soul of this piece is the interaction of movement between the two people. This piece is designed to tell a story through 2 people because one person's movement affects the other person's movement. This long pattern of shapes is connected to a hip of each person and is used to move the geometric strand and create different spaces and looks.


Whether it is dancing, walking, sleeping, or running, we are always mindlessly moving. Using the Accordion, we raise the question of how can we change the size or part of a movement into something bigger, or better, or longer? Because the Accordion is attached to two people, both movements affect the piece. This means both bodies must work together to achieve the desired move. The basic technology behind this piece is hinges. We used string and a weaving technique to create hinges to connect the pieces and allow flexibility. An important social question raised is the ripple effect of your movement. How do one person's actions affect another person? If the two users understand the consequences of their actions, they will be able to give a flawless performance with the piece. The Accordion can be used for dance, storytelling, theater, as well as bond and teamwork building circumstances. The Accordion can help build bonds, create big and small movements, and put a performance on a whole new level.