Laban, Rudolf von, 1879-1958.

Rudolf Laban was born December 15, 1879 in Bratislava, Slovakia. After studying architecture at the Ècole des Beaux Arts in Paris, Laban moved to Munich at age 30 and began his research on Bewegungskunst, or the movement arts. In 1915 Laban established the Choreographic Institute in Zürich and later founded branches in Italy, France, and Europe. His greatest contribution to dance was his 1928 publication of Kinetographie Laban, a dance notation system that came to be called Labanotation. It is still used as one of the primary movement notation systems in dance. In 1930 Laban became the director of the Allied State Theatres in Berlin but left in 1938 for great Britain where he turned to the study of human movement in the workplace. In 1947 he published a book related to his research entitled Effort. He continued to teach and do research in Britain until his death in 1958.

From the description of Rudolf Laban icosahedron, 1939. (University of California, Irvine). WorldCat record id: 57017533

Historical Background

Rudolf Laban was born December 15, 1879, in Bratislava, Slovakia. After studying architecture at the École des beaux arts in Paris, Laban moved to Munich at age 30 and began his research on Bewegungskunst, or the movement arts. In 1915 Laban established the Choreographic Institute in Zürich and later founded branches in Italy, France, and Europe. His greatest contribution to dance was his 1928 publication of Kinetographie Laban, a dance notation system that came to be called Labanotation. It is still used as one of the primary notation systems for movement in dance. In 1930 Laban became the director of the Allied State Theatres in Berlin but left in 1938 for Great Britain, where he turned to the study of human movement in the workplace. In 1947 he published a book related to his research entitled Effort. He continued to teach and do research in Britain until his death in 1958.

From the guide to the Rudolf Laban icosahedron, 1939, (University of California, Irvine. Library. Special Collections and Archives.)