SUGGESTED MOVEMENT: OLD WAY VOGUE*
There are multiple styles of voguing, the first recognized style created was Old Way vogue. The focus on this style is “…precision, style and grace by presenting long lines, powerful postures and attitude throughout the whole body. The style is strongly inspired by hiëroglyphs, posing, martial arts, breaking and popping.”
Try it out for yourself– strike a pose!
Need help? Try out these poses:
*Please be aware and recognize that these movements are connected to the culture, history, and liberation movement of Black/Soulaan and other marginalized communities. Participate respectfully and intentionally and if you share this movement with others, we stress you include the history and people behind the movement.
HISTORY
Voguing is a street dance style that was first introduced in the ballrooms of Black and Latin LGBTQ communities in Harlem. The origin of this style is heavily credited to Paris Dupree. The lore is that one day while Black drag queens were throwing shade at each other, Dupree had a Vogue magazine in her bag. As she was dancing, she took it out, started posing like a model on a page and then stopped in that pose on the beat. She would then continue this movement style, turning the pages and stopping in a new pose. Seeing Dupree’s movement, another queen came up and did a different pose in front of her. Responding, Dupree went in front of her and did another pose. This competition of shade, trying to make a prettier pose than each other, gained traction in the ballrooms. David DePino, an influential DJ for the voguing community, said “At first they called it ‘posing’ and then, because it started from Vogue magazine, they called it ‘voguing’.”
Another alternative origin to the lore of voguing was that it was first practiced by the Black, gay inmates of Rikers Island. The movement was a way of attracting the attention of men and throwing shade. Ballroom pioneer Kevin Ultra Omni noted that “Maybe they didn’t have a name for it, but that’s what they were doing, or so it’s said… I know Paris was an early pioneer of voguing. But I believe that vogue existed in some other form through other people as well. I also think that a lot of voguing poses come from African art and Egyptian hieroglyphics.”
This blog is part of a participatory performance art piece called “The Search for Community Continues“, which aims to unveil and explore the connective tissue between movement, art, and environment by co-creating a brave space to dance to the sound of community.
Knox Community Street Dance 