Spacial Dynamics®

By Jaimen McMillan
SDI Director

Spacial Dynamics® is the study of the interplay between the human being and space. Space itself has been perhaps the most neglected component in the study of human movement. When not overlooked altogether, it is often considered something abstract, limited, or--worse yet--merely empty. Students of Spacial Dynamics® learn to meet space as a vibrant medium, and movement as a dynamic force that is at their disposal to span distances and reach across what was once a void. They are guided to experience space as alive and to understand the principles involved in interacting with space in learning, in social, pedagogical, and therapeutic situations, and in personal development.

Bothmer Exercise: "The Spear"

In order to use spatial movement in an appropriate, artistic, and scientific way, our own movements must be worthy of imitation. We must develop new concepts of space and new ways of perceiving movement. We must learn what effect a given movement has upon another person. We must have a living, holistic picture of healthy development, into which we can choose to move.

My personal journey has led me through sports, fencing, and dance to the experience of mastered space; through eastern martial arts to the experience of concentrated space; through the study of water, sound, and eurythmy to the experience of fluid space; through projective geometry to the experience of infinite space; through physiotherapy, classical and rhythmical massage, and movement therapy to the first-hand experience of the space of the other person.

On my journey I met revolutionary thinkers of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries who contributed essential ideas to expand our concept and perception of space:

• Karl König, Johannes W. Rohen, and Jaap van der Wal described the embryo as microcosmic space.
• M.C. Escher and John Berger explored visual space.
• Heinrich von Kleist, Albert Einstein, Edwin A. Abbott, and Charles and Ray Eames pointed to the significance of one's own point of reference to space.
• Edward T. Hall and August Nitschke recognized the specific use of space for communication in different cultures, i.e., space as a language.
• Rudolf Steiner, George Adams, and Olive Whicher brought the evolution of space and the concept of sunspace.

Bothmer Exercise: "Movement Towards the Goal"

My journey also led me to Bothmer Gymnastics®, where we find age-appropriate exercises for development in space and for perceiving the qualities of space. These exercises,developed by Fritz Graf von Bothmer, accompany the growing child through definable developmental spatial stages of claiming and taking command of the body. Their quiet beauty and strong geometrical quality offer both a sense of order and the possibility of experiencing the qualities of the different dimensions of space. The Bothmer exercises draw their subtle power from the archetypal pictures of the human gestalt. The free, upright human being, with its symbol of the cross, is the starting point, the endpoint, and the underlying skeleton of every Bothmer exercise.

It was out of this journey that Spacial Dynamics® was born. The process of movement education is certainly a complex one. Every part of the human body has its own distinctive movement activity or gesture, yet each of these has to be woven together to create a harmonious whole. Otherwise, one-sided tendencies may assert themselves, which block or distort balanced development. Every stage of development, every illness, has its accompanying spatial movement gestalt or pattern, which one can learn to perceive. Discovering the patterns has made it possible to extract principles. The art of differentiated movement, with each part of the body adhering to its own archetypal movement pattern, makes it possible to apply them with a growing degree of effectiveness.

In Spacial Dynamics® space is differentiated into inner space, body space, personal space, interpersonal space, social space, public space, suprapersonal space, and infinite space. Difficulties in enlivening one or more of these spaces can lead to problems in relating, communicating, integrating, and being consciously active; such difficulties may even lead to a paralysis of the will.

The unique approach to posture offered by Spacial Dynamics® forms the basis on which we can learn to experience space through our own bodies. Many postural methods promote healthy positions that help avoid pain and injuries, but the individual's attention is often unintentionally glued to specific parts of his or her body. In Spacial Dynamics®, the ideal posture is defined as that spatial state from which everything can be perceived most clearly. Posture is thus understood as a spatial process rather than a fixed or finished position or pose. Through a sequential spatial process one is introduced to an ever-widening range of perception and given the opportunity to increase one's effectiveness in the world. Through the unique approach of Spacial Dynamics®, children can be led into the stream of the upright before heaviness can harden or distort the body.

Spacial Dynamics® is not a finished system. Those who have been trained in the discipline are constantly researching the specific effects of movement processes and spatial relationships to see what part they play in a given activity. Their applications are as varied as the backgrounds and interests of the practitioners.

The principles of Spacial Dynamics® have been applied in education, special education, remedial work, physical medicine, chiropractic, movement therapy, sports, physiotherapy and massage, psychological counseling, birth preparation, work with the elderly and dying, and as a tool for self-development, as well as in music, dance, drama, mime, eurythmy, architecture, social work, computer applications, business consultation, and industrial safety.

Some 300 students are currently being trained in Spacial Dynamics® in Germany, the U.K., Hungary, and the U.S. The training incorporates many of the Bothmer exercises, which are included for their clarity, their power and beauty, their appropriateness, and their uniqueness in dealing with the human being as a developing spatial being. Bothmer Gymnasticsâ and Spacial Dynamics® enrich one another yet remain distinct contributions to the field of human movement education and therapy.

We can enliven the space in which we move: we can imbue it with our own spatial "substance," our own being. Any true master of movement does this. It is not necessary, however, to be a master in order to experience and practice this. It should be possible for every human being to experience "moments of mastery in space," moments where what one does makes a positive difference. This can be taught. It can be learned.

Working with the dynamics of space is an effective way to introduce oneself or others to the world of movement, to the world of change. In learning to move in this fashion, we practice much more than a particular skill, technique, or sport. We choose a dynamic. We change the space. We create a movement. We are not pawns in a game but are creators in space.

© 2002 bnsDesigns