Artist Statement

As an artist, I have been fascinated by the mystique of the human physical body, and I have continued to dance with a strong interest in the personal stories that the individual body contains.

I have personally experienced childbirth, overcoming depressive symptoms and asthma, recovering from spinal canal stenosis, and now continuing my battle with breast cancer.

These experiences not only expanded the possibilities of the physical body of this yellow-skinned Asian, but also greatly strengthened the spirituality that I had inherited from my ancestors as a “Japanese”. I experienced enough miracles to understand the mystery of the physical body, and these are deeply recorded in both my body and my spirit. This has been elevated to an action that extends from self-love to respect for the lives of others and a desire for social harmony.

Dance is the equation of spirit, bodies, and the stories that have been inherited and recorded within them. My individuality is expressed in the way I focus on the ordinary aspects of everyday life, unravel the life experiences that flow deep within people, and capture them with fresh movements and transform them into the art form of dance.

As a dancer, choreographer and teaching artist, my mission is to continue seeking insight from my own life, to affirm the way of life of those who struggle to survive in this harsh world, and to provide dance works that celebrate the lives and bodies of human beings.

Miho Ryu, February 2025