Art of Being through Dance Improvisation

Adult Group Class / Dance Program

Experience soothing somatic and improvisational exercises to feel centered and grounded, and to dance freely and fully as you are! Ayako will guide you in opening up a wider and deeper space through your body, mind, and perspective. This is an open-level class. Practitioners of all forms of dance and movement lovers are welcome. Dress comfortably so you can move with ease. Just come with your dancing spirit!

Ayako Kato, a 2023 United States Artist Fellow, is a contemporary experimental choreographer/dancer/improviser originally from Japan. Since 1998, Ayako Kato/Art Union Humanscape has been in deep collaboration with over 100 musicians and composers, presenting in Europe, Asia, and the US. Advocating the principles of fūryū, Japanese for “wind flow,” cyclical transformational motion in nature, she creates solo, ensemble pieces, and movement installations for traditional stages, galleries, and large scale site-specific locations. In 2025, she toured Asia as Suzuribako trio with Swiss based musicians Sebastian Strinning, saxophone, and Frantz Loriot, viola. In 2024, she presented "ETHOS IV: Degrowth/Cycle/Rebirth" for the Chicago Spotlight Festival at the Dance Center of Columbia College. She also performed and published her artist book "Art of Being through Emptiness” in the Black Air exhibition at the Casino Luxembourg Forum d'art contemporain. Ayako holds an MFA in dance from the University of Michigan. www.ayakokatodance.com