Artistry in Motion is a collaboration of several local movement arts including but not limited to juggling, fire dancing and fire spinning, parkour and the circus arts, such as aerial silks and aerial hoop. Dayton resident Jimi Black has been a driving force behind the recent initiative to bring those who practice these activities together.
Black, a juggler and fire dancer himself, is looking into ways to showcase the group members’ talents. The ultimate goal is to open a nonprofit training gym for anyone interested in movement arts within the Dayton area.
“Right now, we meet up pretty regularly at parks, but having a training facility is extremely important,” Black said. “It’s a great way to solidify the group.”
An indoor training facility would have several other benefits, as well.
“It would make year-round training possible,” Scott Thompson said. “And it would also enable us to practice technical stuff safely in a controlled environment.”
Discovering fitness and fun
Thompson, 21, was never into fitness, until he discovered parkour. Sometimes referred to as free running, parkour is a way of training your body and mind using physical obstacles from park benches to handrails.
“In high school, I was out of shape and overweight and parkour changed that,” Thompson said. “It really translated to my daily life: You see something getting in your way, and you find a way past it.”
The Kettering man, who lost 20 pounds in his first year of parkour training, enjoys practicing his craft at local parks but is excited by the prospect of having a year-round indoor facility.
“We could buy tons of mats and crash pads so if we’re learning a new skill, we can do it without getting hurt,” he said. “And the best part would be the accessibility 24/7. It would be fantastic.”
Weight loss isn’t limited to parkour.
“I know people who have lost a significant amount of weight juggling,” Black said. “And juggling is one way to raise your IQ.”
A study published in the journal Nature found that learning to juggle might cause certain areas of your brain to grow, making it good for the mind as well as the body.
Showcasing movement arts
While ballet, tap and jazz classes are common childhood rites of passage, fire dancing is another story.
“I was at a friend’s house, I had never seen it before, but that’s when I started,” Black said. “I definitely get a lot of strange looks, especially in public.”
Five years later, Black performs in and manages Combustion Crew, a Dayton-based fire and LED (light-emitting diode) performance troupe. The 25-year-old enjoys sharing his art with others and also takes his juggling on the road, performing and teaching.
“With our own facility, we could host weekly workshops and showcase what we do,” he said.
A showcase and fundraiser will likely be slated for the fall. For information on the group, visit the Artistry in Motion Facebook page.
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