My work as an artist is to incite communion through visual and performance-based practices. I create spaces to witness, celebrate and experience ecological relationships and the multiple histories of specific places. The work is about creating invitations.
what informs me
My work is primarily informed by questions - what dance can do, how bodies can heal, where collaboration can be most powerful. I listen deeply to places and communities to intuit the creative forms that might be initiated and work with others to infuse the work with a combination of shared vision and different perspectives. This way of working is influenced by
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dancers
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writers
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climate scientists
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specific places
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traditional or ancestral knowledge
how I work
Whether developing projects through self-organized collaboration or via specific invitations, my work is always a call-and-response with specific places and with others. Most projects come from a durational period of study and practice that incorporates intentional elements of improvisation and spontaneity. Elements of this practice include:
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embodiment activities
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experimental movement
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reading, writing and other forms of study
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deep observation
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transdisciplinary collaboration
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rituals of healing and sharing
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immersive encounters with nature
where I work
At the intersection of performance and research, I develop work about grief and change. My projects come from immersive encounters with specific places such as:
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creative residencies
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land trusts and conservancies
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universities
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sites of rapid climate change
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nontraditional venues for dance and performance
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intercultural communities in which ritual is a shared priority
how it manifests
Working in a range of media and with various collaborators allows for a multitude of expressions to take form. I like working at different scales and with distinct audiences. I enjoy sharing work in intimate settings as well as formal venues. My favorites ways of working result in:
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site-specific danceworks
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immersive and nontraditional performances
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restorative knowledge-sharing workshops
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embodied rituals
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collective gatherings
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creative essays
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film and music collaborations
why it matters
As the world rapidly changes, I strive to combine materials and ideas in ways that prioritize beauty while creating spaces for celebration, mourning and transformation. I am compelled by the belief that we need:
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ways to reckon with climate collapse
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tools for understanding and celebrating cultural and political difference
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opportunities to collaborate at the intersections of science and creativity
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rituals for mourning and righting historic injustices
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networks of people invested in care
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artistic experiences that transform and transcend
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practices that inspire a connection to our planet and each other