CLM: I can see that you’re sketching. Your biographers claim you gave up painting to pursue dance…
R. Laban: I gave up art as a profession, but I’ve always enjoyed drawing. So when I’m on holiday, I like to sketch, especially landscapes.
CLM: From digging in your archives, I know that you did lots of drawings related to dance and movement. These mainly figure drawings and geometrical forms. Some are quite lovely.
RL: Thank you. The drawings you are talking about weren’t meant for public display. It was just my way of thinking. You see, long ago when I studied figure drawing at the Beaux Arts Academy in Paris, we used geometric forms to help with proportion and foreshortening. I found those same techniques really helpful when I started to study trace-forms.
CLM: I’m glad you brought up trace-forms. I’ve been meaning to ask you ….