Are you new to fire and flow? Are you wondering what that fancy sounding word you've read or overheard means? Have you been around for a while, and want to check we know what we're talking about? (Just kidding... but feel free to pop your suggestions in the comments below!)
We have put together this list of helpful kupu/words to help you along on your flow journey.
GLOSSARY OF FLOW KUPU
Dipping station: a.k.a. fuelling station, the area where fire spinners dip the wicks of their fire props in fuel, this area is away from the spinning area
Fire arts: a.k.a. fire spinning, using fire as a tool to create movement-based art, with or without an object/prop
Fire blanket: a special type of blanket specially designed for extinguishing fires on a person
Fire breathing: the mouth is filled with fuel which is then vaporised (sprayed/spat out) with a flame in front of it
*fire breathing is one of the most dangerous forms of fire arts
Fire dancing: manipulating a fire prop, usually blended with dance
Fire eating: lit wicks are extinguished using the mouth
Fire fleshing: moving a lit wick along the skin, often on the forearm, to create fire trails
Flow artist: a person who is involved with flow arts and practices their discipline often, can also be referred to as a ‘flowmie’
Flow arts: play, a hobby, a sport, an art form, involves movement and object manipulation
Flow state: a term coined by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (pronounced Me-hi Chic-sent-me-hi), referring to being in a state of optimal experience, a.k.a. in the zone, or, moving meditation
Fuel: the flammable liquid the wick gets dipped in for fire spinning
Fuelling station: a.k.a. dipping station, the area where fire spinners dip the wicks of their fire props in fuel, this area is away from the spinning area
Jam: a.k.a. spin jam/flow jam, refers to a gathering of flowmies for practice, skill sharing, idea bouncing and generation, and having heaps of fun
Kevlar: a strong synthetic fibre that is heat-resistant
Movements: a.k.a. tricks/moves, refers to a particular movement with a prop
- Anti-spin: refers to an object’s rotation in relation to the body part controlling it (usually hand/arm), e.g. the arm is moving clockwise but the prop is rotating anti-clockwise, applies to any prop
- In-spin: refers to an object’s rotation in relation to the body part controlling it (usually hand/arm), e.g. the arm is moving clockwise and the prop is rotating clockwise, applies to any prop
- Isolation: a technique where a part of the prop appears to be stuck in place while the rest of the prop moves around it, applies to any prop
- Hybrid: a technique where each hand executes a different trick, applies to double props
Planes: the area in which the prop spins in relation to your body
- Vertical planes: the prop spins perpendicular to the horizon
- Wall plane: the prop spins in front of you, perpendicular to your feet
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Dark (dark wall) plane: the prop spins behind you
*For wall plane, we use clockwise/anticlockwise when talking about direction -
Wheel plane: the prop spins at your sides, parallel to your feet
*For wheel plane, we use forwards/backwards when talking about direction - Horizontal planes: the prop spins parallel to the horizon
- Earth plane: below your waist
- Mountain plane: between your waist and head
- Cloud plane: above your head
Props: refers to the objects manipulated in flow arts, e.g. poi, staff, hoop etc.
- Ball props: ball-based props such as poi, rope dart, contact juggling etc.
- Day-flow props: a.k.a. practice props, refers to props that do not have LED’s and cannot be set on fire
- Fire props: refers to props with wicks that can be set on fire
- LED props: refers to props that can be lit with LEDs
- Pixel props: a type of LED prop where the lights create images as the prop is spun
- Practice props: a.k.a. day-flow props, refers to props that do not have LED’s and cannot be set on fire
- Stick props: stick-based props such as staff, double staff, juggling sticks, levi wand etc.
Safety: refers to the person who is actively watching over flow artists while they spin fire, and will act as fire-fighter, first aid, and crowd control
Spin off: a method to safely remove excess fuel from a wick before lighting up, minimises the spray of fuel when spinning
Spin style: the way in which a person manipulates a prop
- Spin/rotation: using a finger and thumb grip to manipulate a prop, most common with stick props
- Contact: using various parts of your body to manipulate a prop, such as neck, arms etc. Keeping the prop in contact with your body, with minimal throws or finger-grip, applies to any prop
- Flow: a focus on flowing, dancing, and getting into a meditative state with your prop
- Tech: the technical aspects of spinning, with a strong focus on precise movement and complex geometric patterns
Tail: a piece of fabric added to the end of a prop to create extra drag (slows it down) and give a stunning visual effect
Timing and direction: a double prop concept, refers to the way the two props spin in relation to each other
- Together time: when both props pass the same point at the same time
- Split time: when each prop passes the same point at a different time, usually 180 degrees apart, e.g. one poi is at the top of its rotation while the other poi is at the bottom
- Same direction: both props are spinning in the same direction, e.g. clockwise
- Opposite direction: both props are spinning in opposite directions, e.g. one is going forwards and the other is going backwards
Timing/direction combos: four fundamental ways to spin double props
- Tog-same/TS: props are spinning in together time, in the same direction
- Tog-opp/TO: props are spinning in together time, but in opposite directions
- Split-same/SS: props are spinning in split time, in the same direction
- Split-opp/SO: props are spinning in split time, in opposite directions
Wick: the part of the fire prop that gets soaked in fuel and set on fire
