The body says what words cannot.
Martha GrahamRead
To me, this acquirement of nervous, physical, and emotional concentration is the one element possessed to the highest degree by the truly great dancers of the world. Its acquirement is the result of discipline, of energy in the deep sense. That is why there are so few great dancers.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Great dancers achieve a unique level of concentration through discipline and energy.
Martha Graham emphasizes that the highest caliber of dancers embodies intense nervous, physical, and emotional concentration, which is fundamental to their craft. This level of mastery does not happen by chance; it is cultivated through rigorous discipline and an intrinsic energy, which is why truly great dancers are rare.
Themes
DanceConcentrationDisciplineEnergyGreatness
In practice
Example use cases
In a dance class when discussing the importance of focus.
More from Martha Graham
All quotes →Nobody cares if you can't dance well.
Martha GrahamRead
Movement never lies. It is a barometer telling the state of the soul's weather to all who can read it.
Martha GrahamRead
What people in the world think of you is really none of your business.
Martha GrahamRead
No artist is pleased. There is no satisfaction whatever at any time. There is only a strange, divine dissatisfaction, a blessed unrest that keeps us marching and makes us more alive than the others.
Martha GrahamRead
The body is your instrument in dance, but your art is outside that creature, the body.
Martha GrahamRead
Similar quotes
Digital photography is, by definition, unfinished. You don't feel that after every 24 or 36 shots you have to change your film - you know you can go on for ever if you want. You can see the result immediately, and find out if your original idea is worth going on with or not, whether it can be corrected, whether it can be improved.
Abbas KiarostamiRead
Photography helps people to see.
Berenice AbbottRead
Van Gogh never made a penny in his entire lifetime. He painted because it was his soul, his excitement. It was what aligned him with his Source of being. It's the same with me and writing.
Wayne DyerRead
Art is always about overcoming obstacles between the inner condition and the skill for expression.
Ai WeiweiRead
Perhaps one of the most difficult things for us to do is to choose a notable and joyous dress for men. There would be more joy in life if we were to accustom ourselves to use all the beautiful colours we can in fashioning our own clothes.
Oscar WildeRead
You want to be a bit compulsive in your art or craft or whatever you do.
Steve MartinRead