SV: [sw-l] NORWAY Full Body Writing for Research Project

Fri Oct 21 18:44:38 UTC 2005

Dear Valerie and SW List Members!

Of course I will give you a short description and the purpose Valerie:

I'm doing my research work at The Norwegian University of Science and
Technology (NTNU) in Trondheim. 

For the moment the title of my project is: “The craftsman’s language”. My
study focuses on the language of craftsmanship lodged in archaeological
timber and extant wooden buildings in Norway. 

Craftsmanship is embodied knowledge where a sense of direction is an
essential feature. The aim of this study will be to find ways to capture and
translate this into an academic format. My intention is to develop a “common
language” or a “notation map” for artisans and archaeologists like the
“musicians note” or the “dancer’s notation system”. In that way we can
experiment with, and reconstruct the knowledge and the body gestures behind
the working processes throughout the artisan’s signatures lodged in the
timbers. This is an important supplement to the written sources and the
existing traditional knowledge. The knowledge behind the signatures will in
this way be more available. It is absolutely necessary to connect analysis
of the signatures with analyses of artisan’s movability and theories of
notation. An example; Norwegian fishermen have up to 200 different words for
waves, designating their shape, strength and behavior. Similarly, carpenters
have a rich vocabulary who describes their methods. Only part of that has
been transmitted into verbal form. Other parts are less easily verbalized.
The form, tool marks and timbers of wooden buildings hold what may be termed
craftsmen’s signatures. To read them it is necessary to understand the
movements and perceptions of space of that govern the crafts that produced
them. Dance and music are performing arts that each has writing systems that
allow descriptions of movements and sounds: choreography or dance notation,
and musical notes. Each of these signs holds meanings that are immediately
understood by the performer, and by the informed audience. Craftspeople also
have forms of notation systems. Academics have begun creating notation
systems to describe craftsmanship in an academic format, designating tool
marks, using annotated video films as referencing tools, and exploring dance
notation, film script and the navigation of space. My study aims to
establish a theory and a method that allows us to record tool marks and
develop a system of signs that make the knowledge and the language behind
them available for a broader public. This is essential for the creation of a
discourse concerning tool marks as another language.

Cheers,
Harald 

-----Opprinnelig melding-----
Fra: owner-sw-l at majordomo.valenciacc.edu
[mailto:owner-sw-l at majordomo.valenciacc.edu] På vegne av Valerie Sutton
Sendt: 21. oktober 2005 18:10
Til: sw-l at majordomo.valenciacc.edu
Emne: Re: [sw-l] NORWAY Full Body Writing for Research Project

SignWriting List
October 21, 2005

Dear SW List Members:
Yesterday I got a surprise telephone call from Ingvild Roald and  
Harald Bentz Høgseth from Norway! Thank you!

Harald's research project is fascinating. It is related to writing  
Full Body movement, documenting the movements of the body, when  
people build churches and do other carpentry work...also related to  
historic work on how carpentry and timber work was done in Norway  
generations ago...

This is a part of Harald's dissertation, at the University of  
Trondheim in Norway...is that correct, Harald?

In English, can you give us a very short description of your  
dissertation and what the purpose is, of your work, Harald?

Below is a listing of places to read about the history of the writing  
system...

Post questions to the List anytime...and best of luck with this  
interesting project!

Val ;-)

--------------------------

On Oct 20, 2005, at 10:08 AM, Valerie Sutton wrote:

> SignWriting List
> October 20, 2005
>
> Harald Bentz Høgseth from Norway wrote:
>
>> 1. I need some guidance on have to be familiar with full body  
>> writing, but
>> also about the background (history), theory, the method and so on...
>>
>
>
> Hello Harald and Everyone!
> Here are some links that might help about the history of the  
> writing system:
>
> HISTORY of SignWriting
> http://www.signwriting.org/library/history
> (this web page has lots of links to read about)
>
> ABOUT DANCEWRITING
> http://dancewriting.org/about/what/
>
> ABOUT MOVEMENT WRITING
> http://dancewriting.org/movement/about/what/
>
> HISTORY of Movement Writing
> (just beginning...may have 20 pages when finished)
> http://www.movementwriting.org/lessons/fullbody/fullbody01.html
> http://www.movementwriting.org/lessons/fullbody/fullbody02.html
>
>
> plus projects in different countries...Hope this helps!  Val ;-)
>
>
> Who Uses SignWriting? Directory
> http://www.SignWriting.org/about/who/who.html
>
> SignWriting In Belgium
> http://www.SignWriting.org/belgium
>
> SignWriting In Brazil
> http://www.SignWriting.org/brazil/brazil.html
>
> SignWriting In Canada
> http://www.SignWriting.org/canada/canada.html
>
> SignWriting In Denmark
> http://www.SignWriting.org/denmark/denmark.html
>
> SignWriting In France
> http://www.SignWriting.org/france/france.html
>
> SignWriting In Germany
> http://www.SignWriting.org/germany/germany.html
>
> SignWriting In Ireland
> http://www.SignWriting.org/ireland/ireland.html
>
> SignWriting In Italy
> http://www.SignWriting.org/italy/italy.html
>
> SignWriting In Mexico
> http://www.SignWriting.org/mexico/mexico.html
>
> SignWriting In Nicaragua
> http://www.SignWriting.org/nicaragua/nicaragua.html
>
> SignWriting In Norway
> http://www.SignWriting.org/norway/norway.html
>
> SignWriting In Peru
> http://www.SignWriting.org/peru/peru.html
>
> SignWriting In South Africa
> http://www.SignWriting.org/africa/africa.html
>
> SignWriting In Spain
> http://www.SignWriting.org/spain/spain.html
>
> SignWriting In the UK
> http://www.SignWriting.org/uk/uk.html
>
> SignWriting In the USA
> http://www.SignWriting.org/usa/usa.html
>