Exhibitionists·Video

Art as catharsis: How choreographer Jasmyn Fyffe confronted her own emotions

Jasmyn Fyffe was choreographing a duet in her work called "Pulse," when she had a moment she wasn't expecting. Her personal life had made its way into her art without her even noticing.

"The art that we make and create can really heal us"

Art as catharsis: How choreographer Jasmyn Fyffe confronted her own emotions

9 years ago
Duration 1:56
Choreography Jasmyn Fyffe tells the story of how her personal and professional lives collided when she was designing an intense duet.

Even the most diligent among us struggle sometimes to keep our personal lives from disrupting our thoughts when we're in the workplace. But what if you're an artist? It seems like that's a world that's all about personal (and often autobiographical) expression.

Choreographer Jasmyn Fyffe thought she was keeping her life at bay, though, when she was choreographing her latest work. But that separation collapsed when she had to confront her own emotions, watching two of her dancers perform a duet she'd created. 

In this edition of Storytellers — where artists tell us about critical moments in their creative lives — Fyffe takes us back to the moment when she realized her life and her art were inextricably entwined.

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