Language of the Axis is a groundbreaking exploration of body awareness and movement. Drawing on her extensive experience as a dancer and teacher, Mary O'Donnell Fulkerson presents a unique approach to understanding the body through anatomical images and simple actions.

The book is in three parts:
1. A Look at the Body: introduces anatomical images that form the foundation of body awareness.
2. Easy Action: describes a series of movements to experience these body concepts in practice.
3. Seeing a Context: explores the application of these principles in dance and everyday life.

Fulkerson’s innovative method integrates mind and body, encouraging readers to develop a new language of physical sensation. Her approach has influenced dancers, choreographers and movement practitioners worldwide.

Whether you’re a dancer, movement enthusiast, or simply curious about body awareness, Language of the Axis offers a fresh perspective on how we inhabit and move our bodies. Discover a deeper connection between thought and action, and unlock new possibilities for expression and understanding.

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Language of the Axis was written and illustrated by Mary O’Donnell Fulkerson on her arrival in 1973 from the USA at Dartington College of Arts in Devon, UK. It was first published by Peter Hulton in Theatre Papers as a loose-leaf book so that dancers might respond in movement to the provocations within a particular page and photograph.

It is republished to accompany Linda Hartley’s book Embodied Spirit, Conscious Earth, which draws on Fulkerson’s work.

At Dartington in the early 70s, Mary O'Donnell Fulkerson paved the way, along with Steve Paxton, for Dartington to become a truly international, innovative centre for experimental dance. Mary is credited with being responsible, possibly more than anyone else, for bringing the idea of what we now call somatic dance to Europe. (Somatic dance meant dance that focused more on the internal physicality of the performer, rather than the effect on the audience. 

She later held a leading position at SNDO, School for New Dance Development in Amsterdam (1987-1989) and co-founded the Center for New Dance Develoment (Dutch “Centrum voor Nieuwe Dans Ontwikkeling”, CNDO) later renamed European Dance Development Center (EDDC) with Aat Hougée in Arnhem, the Netherlands.