Spinning Fire in Volusia County Part II: Ormond Beach, Florida; 02 July 2014

Flow Arts in Ormond Beach, photographed in Volusia county, Florida (02 July 2014).

Last week, Josh Cruz sent word that there was going to be a Flow Arts jam at the Granada approach in Ormond Beach, Florida on Wednesday night. The 386 Flow Arts Community would be out there, Cruz said, along with others who shared similar interests in spinning fire and LED lights. Of course I was game, so I headed down to the beach, a few short miles from where I live, to check out the scene. And what a scene it was…

I’ve certainly seen more than a few fire spinners in my life. You often see them at the beach, actually. Along many populated stretches of Florida’s beaches, a dusk rarely goes by without some sort of Flow Arts display somewhere. Still, on this particular night I saw something new: A Flow Arts jam session, a group of about 40 people (or so) at the beach doing their respective dances both as individuals and as a community.

Spinners took turns with one another, some working with fire, others with LED lights. A percussive drummer improvised and kept beat to each routine. Some individuals did their dance alone. Others spun in groups, mixing LED and fire. When one person’s fire began to wane, another would come in, lighting their fire props with the nearly-extinguished flame of the person prior to them. And on and on it went. Spinners on the sand, spinners in the surf, a perpetual dance of light contrasting against the otherwise-darkened coastline.

Here, then, is a collection of photographs taken of the Flow Arts jam session held on Ormond Beach, Florida the night of Wednesday 02 July 2014. In these photographs, I tried to capture the organic, flowing essence of motion — privileging the fire and the light far more so than those actually controlling the motion. You can click on any thumbnail below to enlarge the gallery and view a higher resolution.

Link: You can also check out the 386 Flow Arts Community on Instagram. Fantastic.

Next on Dust Tracks: Back to the wildlife, eh? Nighttime critters abound, for we are in the thick of summer!