erika (she/they/e)
b. yokohama, japan
currently elsewhere - all over
mail-to: softearth [ at ] proton [dot] me
erika (@soft_ear.th) is a mixed-discipline artist working across contemporary dance, performance-making, emergent media, language, and design to investigate in/betweenness, ambiguity, and fluidity; the interdependence of fear, desire, vulnerability, and (non)(be)longing; and the iterative process of moving in (more) right relationship to change. through inquiry-based practice, erika (co)shapes experiences and (inter)actions that (re)imagine where and how we find pleasure, connection, meaning, power, and possibility.
| 2023 | Monson Arts Residency, monson, me |
| 2023 | LAKE Studios Artist Residency, berlin, germany |
| 2023 | Resilience Dance Company Choreographic Residency, st louis, mo |
| 2022 | Residence Evil, Ox-Bow School of Art and Artists’ Residency, saugatuck, mi |
| 2010 | dean’s list scholar, northwestern university, evanston, il |
SELECTED PERFORMANCES
| 2022 | spiderdaddy, Ox-Bow Residence Evil, saugatuck, mi. solo performance. |
| 2022 | a little crooked, artica festival, st louis, mo. solo performance. |
| 2022 | a little crooked, cherokee street festival, st louis, mo. solo performance. |
| 2022 | object(ification) of (my) desire, space station variety show, st louis, mo.solo performance. |
| 2022 | not all these things are true, intersect arts center, st louis, mo. choreography by Elinor Harrison. |
| 2022 | seed of dreams, edison theater, st louis, mo. choreography by Jane Tellini. |
| 2021 | riding the maelstrom, edison theater, st louis, mo performer with modern american dance company. choreography by Carl Flink. |
| 2021 | a magnificent grey, edison theater, st louis, mo. performer with modern american dance company. choreography by Natalie Williams. |
| 2021 | miles (dia)logged, edison theater, st louis, mo. performer with modern american dance company. choreography by Belicia Beck, Darrell Hyche II, and Natalie Williams. |
| 2021 | fragmented dreamscapes, space station summer residency, crestwood, mo. choreography by Josiah Gundersen. |
| 2021 | and i’d have told you, link auditorium, st louis, mo. hosted by resilience dance company. solo performance. |
| 2019 | innana’s dream, marcelle theater, st louis, mo. performing artist with consuming kinetics dance company. choreography by Jane Tellini. |
| 2019 | arriving at enough, marcelle theater, st louis, mo. performing artist with consuming kinetics dance company. choreography by Kat Norton. |
| 2019 | ikigai, marcelle theater, st louis, mo. performing artist with consuming kinetics dance company. choreography by Rafael Tillery. |
| 2019 | purpose driven, marcelle theater, st louis, mo. performing artist with consuming kinetics dance company. choreography by Arica Brown. |
| 2019 | slam underground, st. louis art museum, st louis, mo. |
| 2019 | enfj, exchange choreography festival, tulsa, ok. choreography by Arica Brown. |
| 2019 | efflorescence, marcelle theater, st. louis, mo. performer with consuming kinetics dance company. choreography by Moxie Doctor. |
| 2019 | enfj, marcelle theater, st louis, mo. performer with consuming kinetics dance company. choreography by Arica Brown. |
| 2019 | femina, marcelle theater, st louis, mo. performer with consuming kinetics dance company. choreography by Ashreale McDowell. |
| 2019 | brought forth by the sun, marcelle theater, st louis, mo. performer with consuming kinetics dance company. choreography by Mary Virtue Clermont. |
| 2019 | worth it, kranzberg theater, consuming kinetics dance company, st louis, mo. solo performance. |
| 2013 | peep show, striding lion performing arts, chicago, il. choreography by Stephanie Paul. |
SELECTED CHOREOGRAPHY
| 2023 | are you ready, it’s profound again, commissioned by resilience dance company, st louis, mo |
| 2022 | bodies in (between) space and time, commissioned by mildred lane kemper art museum, st louis, mo. |
| 2022 | notes on a practice in listening, premiering at dance24 festival, st louis, mo. |
| 2020 | the underneath, consuming kinetics dance company, st louis, mo. |
| 2020 | is/nt it a sad day, consuming kinetics dance company teen dance program, st louis, mo |
| 2019 | we finally see, consuming kinetics dance company teen dance program, st louis, mo. |
| 2019 | (what) right thing to do, west high school dance department, torrance, ca. |
| 2022 | advanced contemporary/modern dance, resilience dance company, st. louis, mo. |
| 2021 | guest lecture, introduction to contemporary dance, washington university in st. louis. |
| 2019-2020 | advanced contemporary/modern dance, consuming kinetics dance company, st. louis, mo. |
| 2019-2020 | teen contemporary/modern dance, consuming kinetics dance company, st. louis, mo. |
TEACHING (DESIGN)
| 2021-2022 | ux research methods for design, sam fox school of design & visual arts, washington university in st. louis. |
| 2021 | interaction design: understanding health and well-being, sam fox school of design & visual arts, washington university in st. louis. |
| 2020-2021 | visual principles for the screen, sam fox school of design & visual arts, washington university in st. louis. |
| 2018-now | ux academy, designlab, new york, ny. |
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SELECTED TALKS + PANELS, DESIGN + EQUITY
| 2021 | notes on design justice, talk, technology for a just society, princeton university. |
| 2020 | designing equity, panel, st. louis public radio, st. louis, mo. |
| 2018 | co-designing for racial equity, panel, reconstructing practice conference, los angeles, ca, july 2018. |
| 2018 | introduction to equity-centered community design, talk, cleveland opportunity zones summit, cleveland, oh. |
| 2018 | health leaders for community action and equity, panel, mad*pow health experience design conference, boston, ma, june 2018. |
SELECTED DESIGN WORKSHOPS
| 2021 | introduction to user experience design, allied media projects, remote/detroit, mi. |
| 2018 | transforming paper, pulitzer arts foundation, st. louis, mo. |
| 2018 | who’s at the table? designing for equity, design + diversity conference, st. louis, mo. |
| 2018 | creative leaders for design and equity, creative placemaking summit, denver, co. |
| 2018 | design, dismantle, rebuild: introduction to equity-centered community design, design for america, washington university in st. louis. |
| 2018 | rethinking history (to redesign our present), sxsw edu, austin, tx. |
| 2018 | media leaders for design and equity, saxum, oklahoma city, ok. |
SELECTED RESEARCH + DESIGN ROLES
| 2022 | senior design researcher + strategist, studio tomo, remote/new york, ny. |
| 2021-2022 | ux designer, 22nd annual allied media conference, remote/detroit, mi. |
| 2019-2022 | senior design researcher + strategist, briteweb ltd., remote/vancouver, canada. |
| 2017-2018 | ux research team member, design justice network website redesign, remote/international |
| 2017-2018 | manager of learning and education, creative reaction lab, st. louis, mo. |
| 2012-2013 | research assistant, civic media immigrant voices project, school of education and social policy, northwestern university, evanston, il. |
EDUCATION
| 2016 | depaul university, graduate course in design and human experience |
| 2013 | northwestern university, bsed in education and social policy, summa cum laude |
| 2012 | school for international training, madagascar, national identity and social change |
| 2011 | school for international training, vietnam, culture, social change, and development |
LANGUAGES
english (native)
japanese (native)
spanish (basic / conversational)