Chinese Kinesthetic Forms

Chinese Kinesthetic Forms is a collection of papers, originally presented at Harvard FAS CAMLab in Fall 2022, that chart the distinctive richness of movement in China across historical contexts and cultural forms—from medieval dance and music evoking visions of Buddhist paradises, to the literati brush arts of painting and calligraphy, to theater and martial arts, to the renditions of all of the above in poetry, cinema, and digital media. Contributions explore how movement, as both expression and object of perception, unfolds experiential dimensions beyond the corporeal, encompassing ritual and spirituality, cosmology, and social relations. Representing original work by both emerging and established scholars, the volume offers a dynamic intervention into ongoing conversations on dance, kinesthetics, and China’s long history of performance. It ultimately argues for an understanding of movement not as an abstract concept, but instead as a fundamental organizing principle of human experience and expression.