Erick Hawkins
Encyclopedia
Frederick Hawkins known as Erick Hawkins (April 23, 1909November 23, 1994) was a leading American
modern-dance choreographer and dancer
Erick Hawkins was born in Trinidad
, Colorado
on April 23 1909. He majored in Greek civilization at Harvard University
, graduating in 1930. But a performance by the German dancers Harald Kreutzberg and Yvonne Georgi so impressed him that he went to Austria to study dance with the former. Later, he studied at the School of American Ballet. Soon he was dancing with George Balanchine
's American Ballet
. In 1937, he choreographed his first dance, Show Piece, which was performed by Ballet Caravan.
The next year, Hawkins was the first man to dance with the company of the famous modern dancer and choreographer Martha Graham
. The following year, he officially joined her troupe, dancing male lead in a number of her works, including Appalachian Spring
in 1944. The two were married in 1948. He left her troupe in 1951 to found his own, and they divorced in 1954.
Not long afterwards, he met and began collaborating with the experimental composer Lucia Dlugoszewski
. They remained together for the rest of his life.
After leaving the Graham Company, Hawkins' work developed in a unique and different direction. Hawkins moved towards an aesthetic vision detached from realistic psychology, plot, social or political agenda, or simple musical analogue. Important influences were the dances of the American Indians, Japanese aesthetics, Zen thinking, as well as the Greek classics. In some ways, he took dance in a similar direction that “abstract” painters were taking art, though he disliked the word “abstract.” This was coupled with a redefinition of dance technique according to newly understood principles of kinesiology, creating a bridge to later somatic studies. Hawkins famous statement was “The body is a clear place.”
Hawkins championed contemporary composers, and insisted on performing to live music. The Erick Hawkins Dance Company toured with the Hawkins Theatre Orchestra, an ensemble of 7 or more instrumentalists plus conductor. In addition to Lucia Dlugoszewski, his collaborators included composers Virgil Thompson, Alan Hohvaness, Lou Harrison, Henry Cowell, Dorrance Stalvey, Toru Takemitsu; visual artists Isamu Noguchi, Ralph Dorazio, Helen Frankenthaler, Robert Motherwell.
On October 14, 1994, one month before he died, he was presented with the National Medal of Arts
by President Clinton
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
modern-dance choreographer and dancer
Erick Hawkins was born in Trinidad
Trinidad, Colorado
The historic City of Trinidad is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of Las Animas County, Colorado, United States...
, Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
on April 23 1909. He majored in Greek civilization at Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
, graduating in 1930. But a performance by the German dancers Harald Kreutzberg and Yvonne Georgi so impressed him that he went to Austria to study dance with the former. Later, he studied at the School of American Ballet. Soon he was dancing with George Balanchine
George Balanchine
George Balanchine , born Giorgi Balanchivadze in Saint Petersburg, Russia, to a Georgian father and a Russian mother, was one of the 20th century's most famous choreographers, a developer of ballet in the United States, co-founder and balletmaster of New York City Ballet...
's American Ballet
American Ballet
The American Ballet was the first professional ballet company George Balanchine created in the United States. The company was founded with the help of Lincoln Kirstein and Edward Mortimer Morris Warburg, managed by Alexander Merovitch and populated by students of Kirstein and Balanchine's School of...
. In 1937, he choreographed his first dance, Show Piece, which was performed by Ballet Caravan.
The next year, Hawkins was the first man to dance with the company of the famous modern dancer and choreographer Martha Graham
Martha Graham
Martha Graham was an American modern dancer and choreographer whose influence on dance has been compared with the influence Picasso had on modern visual arts, Stravinsky had on music, or Frank Lloyd Wright had on architecture.She danced and choreographed for over seventy years...
. The following year, he officially joined her troupe, dancing male lead in a number of her works, including Appalachian Spring
Appalachian Spring
Appalachian Spring is a modern score composed by Aaron Copland that premiered in 1944 and has achieved widespread and enduring popularity as an orchestral suite...
in 1944. The two were married in 1948. He left her troupe in 1951 to found his own, and they divorced in 1954.
Not long afterwards, he met and began collaborating with the experimental composer Lucia Dlugoszewski
Lucia Dlugoszewski
Lucia Dlugoszewski was a Polish-American composer, performer and inventor. She created over a hundred musical instruments, including the timbre piano, a sort of prepared piano in which hammers and keys were replaced with bows and plectra.-Background and early years:The daughter of Polish...
. They remained together for the rest of his life.
After leaving the Graham Company, Hawkins' work developed in a unique and different direction. Hawkins moved towards an aesthetic vision detached from realistic psychology, plot, social or political agenda, or simple musical analogue. Important influences were the dances of the American Indians, Japanese aesthetics, Zen thinking, as well as the Greek classics. In some ways, he took dance in a similar direction that “abstract” painters were taking art, though he disliked the word “abstract.” This was coupled with a redefinition of dance technique according to newly understood principles of kinesiology, creating a bridge to later somatic studies. Hawkins famous statement was “The body is a clear place.”
Hawkins championed contemporary composers, and insisted on performing to live music. The Erick Hawkins Dance Company toured with the Hawkins Theatre Orchestra, an ensemble of 7 or more instrumentalists plus conductor. In addition to Lucia Dlugoszewski, his collaborators included composers Virgil Thompson, Alan Hohvaness, Lou Harrison, Henry Cowell, Dorrance Stalvey, Toru Takemitsu; visual artists Isamu Noguchi, Ralph Dorazio, Helen Frankenthaler, Robert Motherwell.
On October 14, 1994, one month before he died, he was presented with the National Medal of Arts
National Medal of Arts
The National Medal of Arts is an award and title created by the United States Congress in 1984, for the purpose of honoring artists and patrons of the arts. It is the highest honor conferred to an individual artist on behalf of the people. Honorees are selected by the National Endowment for the...
by President Clinton
William Clinton
Bill Clinton is the 42nd President of the United States. William Clinton may also refer to:*William de Clinton, 1st Earl of Huntingdon , English nobleman from prominent Norman family dating to William the Conqueror; Lord High Admiral as of 1333*William Henry Clinton , British general from...
.
Sources
- Erick Hawkins, "The Body is A Clear Place and Other Statements on Dance" (Princeton Book Company/ Dance Horizons, Princeton, NJ, 1992)