Rhythm and Balance in Sculpture and Poetry

Book chapter, 2013

Rhythm might stand for the contrast between balance and movement, rest and conflict, in a piece of art. In this paper, we show that rhythm works as an organizing power as well as a producer of meaning. Both characteristics relate to the fact that rhythms activate internalized bodily experiences. Lena Hopsch has the perspective of producing art, and Eva Lilja forwards the perspective of academic reception analysis. The concept of rhythm is basic in all forms of art. It is common in descriptions of music, poetry, sculpture and painting. Sometimes rhythm seems to be too broad a concept to really tell anything important about a piece of art. Certainly there is need for a definition. Here, we explore aesthetic rhythm as a tool for a better understanding of two art forms: sculpture and poetry. We consider rhythm as a form of perception that governs both the experience and the production of artifacts. Our tool is cognitive theory, especially the field of embodiment research.