Artist Statement
What Drives Me: The drive behind my artistic inquiry has always been how simple stories or everyday life turn into something fantastic. As reader and lover of nature, my choreography is often inspired by the literary or the seemingly mundane. Knitted together by an insistent creative curiosity and sumptuous somatic-based movement, my creations invite the audience to envision the intangible through our movement and embrace the art that exists all around them.
The Root of my Art: I believe in innovation through curiosity and questioning. I ask myself, “Is this necessary to the goal of my work?”, "Do we need this and why?" and, “Where is this coming from?" The goal of my creations is not only reach people on a level that makes them think about art as existing everywhere in their lives and within their own bodies, but to challenge my own method of creation in order to keep pushing my art form forward.
The Parameters of Movement: I use Laban Movement Analysis and somatic movement practices to uncover what it means for the human body to move within and beyond it’s normal parameters. I approach the process of composition by asking, "What are my parameters? Where can I go within them and where can I go around them?" I relish creating works that are both defined by parameters and defy them.
Setting the Stage: Aesthetically, I lean towards defining a character within each body onstage while creating a landscape of movement that floods the space. This requires considering the performance space from the first moment rather than trying to fit or adapt bodies and space to the choreography. Within each creation I focus on how the space around the dancers can remind the audience that any room or landscape they inhabit can be full of motion and drama.
The Art of Collaboration: Each person in the room brings something to the table and I believe that opening my process up to different forms of art creates innovation as well as the possibility to reach a wider audience. I also put a strong emphasis on structure and time in my process. Focused parameters are what create clarity for participants and allows material to develop in an efficient way.
Finding inspiration in the everyday, curiously exploring the parameters of movement, setting the stage by first considering the space, and mining the gifts of others through collaboration; all of these are what drive my work to evolve and defines me as an artist.
The Root of my Art: I believe in innovation through curiosity and questioning. I ask myself, “Is this necessary to the goal of my work?”, "Do we need this and why?" and, “Where is this coming from?" The goal of my creations is not only reach people on a level that makes them think about art as existing everywhere in their lives and within their own bodies, but to challenge my own method of creation in order to keep pushing my art form forward.
The Parameters of Movement: I use Laban Movement Analysis and somatic movement practices to uncover what it means for the human body to move within and beyond it’s normal parameters. I approach the process of composition by asking, "What are my parameters? Where can I go within them and where can I go around them?" I relish creating works that are both defined by parameters and defy them.
Setting the Stage: Aesthetically, I lean towards defining a character within each body onstage while creating a landscape of movement that floods the space. This requires considering the performance space from the first moment rather than trying to fit or adapt bodies and space to the choreography. Within each creation I focus on how the space around the dancers can remind the audience that any room or landscape they inhabit can be full of motion and drama.
The Art of Collaboration: Each person in the room brings something to the table and I believe that opening my process up to different forms of art creates innovation as well as the possibility to reach a wider audience. I also put a strong emphasis on structure and time in my process. Focused parameters are what create clarity for participants and allows material to develop in an efficient way.
Finding inspiration in the everyday, curiously exploring the parameters of movement, setting the stage by first considering the space, and mining the gifts of others through collaboration; all of these are what drive my work to evolve and defines me as an artist.