Kokoro Arts Ltd is an arts company based in Cardiff, Wales managed by Executive Director Gundija Zandersona and Artistic Director Krystal S. Lowe. The company’s core value is to provide artistic opportunities to young people in Wales and beyond, supporting their professional and personal development. Kokoro aims to promote and advance arts for the public benefit, provide opportunities and support artists through workshops, productions, performance platforms, residencies, training programs and exchange projects. It’s especially interested in working with minority communities to bring diversity and promote equality in Welsh arts scene. We had the pleasure to speak to Gundija and Krystal further to explore what’s next on their agenda.
Thanks for taking the time to speak to us about Kokoro Arts Ltd. Please tell us more about how the company was established and got it’s distinctive name.
Gundija: In 2010 I was a part of a project working with Romani communities in Latvia. Through this project I was able to experience the beauty of such a rich culture and people. This experience stuck with me since then so that when I decided to create the company I had dreamed of for so many years I knew exactly what I would name it.
The Romani dictionary translates ‘Kokōró’ as ‘self’. This is where the idea for a company name came from. I wanted the name to be an ode to the Romani community – a community filled with culture and history and to all of those communities that have been marginalised and excluded. I didn’t want the name to have a literal, easily translatable English meaning, I wanted it to be focused on the individual – not the whole – on the ‘self’ instead of a group of people. Kokoro Arts is about focusing on the individual, their desires and passions, their worries and struggles, their successes and ambitions.
Krystal and I had been noticing gaps in the dance sector in Wales long before we established the company in 2019. We felt the lack of support available for us as emerging artists and often we struggled to fit into the wider dance scene in Wales. We both felt the exclusion from the sector as women and mothers and also for Krystal as a Bermudian Black artist and Gundija as a Latvian artist. The sector has been slow to make real changes to affect those most marginalised by the arts so It seemed that the best way to see change happen was to initiate it ourselves. We decided that we would be an organisation that steps up, and fills a gap, to offer opportunities to those who most need them, rather than to wait for those in need to find us. That is still our goal and we’re very purposely working toward it. The work we have done and will do through Kokoro Arts is about us taking responsibility to make the changes we know should be happening all around us and about developing and supporting the next generation of Wales-based artists.
How and when did you both decide to fully embrace dance as a career?
Gundija: For me, it was when I was in high-school and had the privilege of being a student in a creative Danish folk boarding school. The main focus of the studies was self-development. I had always been dancing and dance had always been a big part of my identity when growing up, but it was only after I learnt to believe I could do anything I want with my life, as long as I worked hard towards it, when I first saw dancing as a possible career path for myself.
Krystal: I started dancing when I was 7 years old and loved it from the start. However, I grew up in Bermuda, a country without dance performance companies, so becoming a dancer never seemed like an option. It wasn’t until I was 20 years old, when I considered quitting dance altogether, that I realised how much being a dancer was a part of who I was and not just something I did. So, I didn’t quit. Instead, I trained as much as I could at my local dance school. I’d go in at 3.30 and do beginner ballet with the 7 year olds and then stay and do every class until I finished the night with the advanced classes with the teenagers. After one year, I decided it was time for me to look for a company to join. I googled ‘Ballet Companies in the UK’ and I found Ballet Cymru. I moved to Wales in 2012 and have had the privilege of working in my field this entire time – slowly building my work and experience.
Which artists have been the most influential on your careers and why?
Krystal: This is a difficult question for me to answer. Other than dance school recitals, I didn’t grow up seeing dance on stage or in any other space. I remember watching a dance short on Youtube of Alessandra Ferri dancing while Sting played the guitar and I remember watching it about 100 times. It broke my heart in the best way – I sat there, with fixed eyes, wondering how someone could be both delicate and strong, flexible and exact.
I find myself far more influenced by art than the artist – when I see a local dance school recital, I feel inspired to create, when I walk through nature, I feel inspired to write, when I hear a sound or song that moves me, I feel inspired to dance.
I did all of my training at my local dance school ‘Somerset School of Dancing’ – except for summer schools each year in Bermuda and the United States: New York, North Carolina, Los Angeles – so my teachers were a massive influence on me as a dancer and on my career going forward. They were kind and motivating and encouraged me to pursue what I was passionate about.
When I see actresses like Viola Davis perform and speak, I am influenced to continue to press on toward more for me and more for the sector I’ve come to love.
And my biggest influence was my mother – who sacrificed so much of her life and time so that I could dance and who never once told me that I should choose the safer option. She saw in me an unyielding passion for the arts and encouraged me to pursue it and never once took any notice of the barriers put in front of me – so I didn’t either. Instead she encouraged me to work toward all that was for me. My mother read to us at night until I was well into my teen years, she painted our kitchen ceiling in the image of the day sky and painted our bathroom cabinets with massive flowers and little, curly-haired, stick girls wearing skirts. My parents provided ridiculous amounts of books, bikes, rollerblades, and the freedom to explore the outdoors for hours on end. That influenced me – that art was everywhere – especially inside me and that I was made to be an artist.
Gundija: Similar to what Krystal has said, I can’t name an artist or a company that has inspired me to become a dance artist, however I could name quite a few passionate, supportive and philosophical dance teachers that have been an immense influence on me and my direction in life. The dance school ‘Dzirnas’ in Latvia taught me to love dance for what it is, not just the different forms it can take. It also opened my eyes to new dance styles, which is where I fell in love with contemporary dance. The dance school in Denmark was where I was first encouraged to take responsibility for what I, as an individual, value in dance and art making. But, it was the holistic experience as a student in University of Northampton that shaped me into a critically thinking artist. We were trained rigorously, so that by third year we could already work as professionals. The wide range of experiences, both in creating our own work and performing, allowed me to identify my strengths and recognise the future opportunities for me as a dance artist.
What has always inspired me throughout my training as a dancer is the feeling I get from embodying a role on stage and telling a story through my body. There is very little that feels as liberating to me as performing for others, especially if I feel like my performance can transform the audience, even if that’s as little as making them be in that particular moment and forget everything else.
Has an increase in dance companies resulted in furthering opportunities for performance artists and choreographers?
In a very broad way, yes – however, I think in Wales there are more freelance dancers than those working in performance companies. We feel there is something really exciting about dancers creating their own careers in this way and hope that our company can work to support the large number of freelance dancers seeking opportunities for development, connection, and advancement.
The company aims to promote and advance arts for the public benefit whilst providing opportunities for young people in the sector, particularly in Wales. In a COVID conscious environment, this must now be a particular challenge?
We have noticed that promoting and sharing opportunities, thoughts, and information has actually become a bit easier since lockdown began. Because many arts gatherings have now taken up virtual space, it feels like everyone is geographically closer to one another. It has been easier to be involved in meetings, sharings, and events we wouldn’t have usually been able to attend. There are more opportunities for us to be part of conversations and decision making than ever before. This means that we get to influence the direction of important aspects of the dance sector. For Kokoro Arts, because we aren’t focused on performance outcomes, we feel we have more space and time to offer the sector – especially emerging artists. I think the main challenge for us is planning. It’s so difficult to plan next steps when we don’t know what government guidance will be in place from week to week. What we aim to do though, is to keep the focus of the company in our minds and plan and to remain flexible to the ever-changing situation around us. We hope that especially in these challenging, and often discouraging, times for emerging artists – that we will be able to help support and guide; to offer opportunities and to lead emerging artists to opportunities.
Cultural Recovery Fund Grant:
Grants for Swansea Cultural and Creative Freelancers
https://www.swansea.gov.uk/FreelanceGrant01
Arts Council Wales Sharing Together Fund – to support networks of creatives.
https://arts.wales/news-jobs-opportunities/sharing-together-fund-now-open
How does the Welsh art scene differ to the rest of the UK and what are the specific needs, if any, you’re positioned to address?
We don’t have a depth of knowledge of what the arts scene is like in the rest of the UK, however, the Wales-based arts sector is a small sector that, because of geographical separation, can feel very divided. We believe one of the main needs is greater unity throughout the whole of Wales arts scene – something that can be difficult because of the amount of space that separates the different areas of Wales.
Because of the travel restrictions brought on by Covid-19 we can already see an opportunity to change this. So many meetings are now remote and this has made it possible for people to attend sector meetings from all over Wales. Earlier in lockdown we led four Wales-based dance sector meetings to bring about more unity in the dance sector all throughout Wales – and we were pleased to have artists from all parts of Wales present. Location is a massive barrier to this unity – however, the requirement to have meetings remotely has brought more people together. I know that we feel far more present in the sector now that we can attend meetings while remaining at home. Both of us are mothers, and childcare can be a massive barrier to being able to attend meetings in more traditional settings. However, throughout lockdown, the number of remote meetings and the ability to be present but to mute and/or turn off the camera has made the sector far more accessible to us. And in turn we have felt like we have more of a voice within the sector. Because of our greater connection and voice within the sector we are in a place to constantly speak to the needs we know emerging artists face and we can encourage their presence at sector gatherings.
To date, what would you say have been your biggest challenges as an artist?
Gundija: My biggest challenge as an artist, aside from the Covid-19 crisis, has been learning how to start, how to find my feet when I was new to this country and culture. It was difficult knowing how to begin, where to look for opportunities, and how to connect with other artists in the sector when I felt so unusual – like I didn’t fit in and never would. I honestly, wanted to give up so many times. But through learning about the dance sector in Wales and slowly building relationships with people I could respect and trust as artists made such a difference. I think that’s what stoked the fire inside me to begin Kokoro Arts Ltd. I knew exactly what it felt like to be a recent graduate, an emerging artist, and have no clue of where to start. I still remember how lonely and discouraging that can be. For me, I want to connect these eager and talented recent graduates/emerging artists with the sector. I want Kokoro to be a safe place for these artists to come and ask questions, to seek advice and opportunity to grow and connect with other artists; both experienced and emerging. Over the years, as I’ve raised my daughter here and connected more and more to the arts sector here, more specifically the dance sector, I have grown to consider it a second home. I will always be Latvian first, and I am proud of that, but Wales matters to me and so I have a desire for it to succeed and I want myself, through Kokoro Arts, to be a part of enriching and strengthening the arts here.
Krystal: My biggest challenge as an artist was to silence my self-doubt. That seems so small but it’s ever-present. I’ve danced for Ballet Cymru since 2012 and there is something about standing in front of mirrors all day critiquing your work that makes it very difficult to shut that critique off in contexts where it is no longer beneficial. It took a long time before I was able to see myself as an artist and not just a dancer – I mean that to say a dance artist and not just a technical mover. Being an artist is not about perfection – it’s about so much more – and when I was able to move past all of that I was finally in a place where I could truly give something more valuable to my audience, to the sector and to my art. Now, I don’t critique my every move – instead, I hold tightly to my training and technique but I create with all of me – not just my body. I see my life and experiences as a vital part of my offer as an artist and I don’t throw anything away. In 2014 I had a really difficult year, so I wrote a story about all the wonderful things around me. It was a children’s story and it was barely a paragraph – but I held onto that paragraph and I added to it and I shared it and in 2019 I was commissioned by Articulture Wales to create a dance-theatre show for family audiences. Now, Gundija and I have this work that we perform together where we get to inspire families to see the beauty in nature and to accept the beauty within themselves as individuals – something that was a part of both of our journeys as women, mothers, and artists. So now, I create and I love myself and I value my offer at the same time – because my offer has value.
What advice would you give to young artists embarking on their careers?
First, understand that the beginning is difficult for most artists, if not all. It’s part of the growing process in life. There are always moments when you question yourself and your abilities, even when you’re an established artist. But the beginning is the hardest, when it starts to feel like your unrealistic expectations are crumbling and you feel you’re wasting time on uncertainty. But everything is achievable through the work and time you put into your craft. Do not give up when it gets hard.
And second, reach out widely to other artists and don’t allow yourself to settle into working with only a small group of people again and again because they feel comfortable. It’s so much more valuable to work with a wide range of people who are different from you. So don’t seek to only work with your friends who agree with everything you say. Work with those that frustrate you at times and always call you to a higher standard.
What are you currently working on?
Currently we are working on bringing the dance sector together in Wales for conversations and exchange of opinions. The dance sector is so beautifully multi sided, we are working on identifying where there’s a need for extra support and how we can contribute to that. Our engagement is both local and international. We will also be choreographing a piece on the National Dance Company Wales Associates in a project in collaboration with Artes Mundi. As we build the company it’s important to us to continue to contribute to the sector with our work as freelance artists.
Gundija: Currently, I am leading my research and development project ‘Cross-Cultural Women’ funded by the Arts Council Wales, Welsh Government, and the National Lottery. This project explores diverse cross-cultural female stories through movement and text. I have collected personal stories and interviews from four generations of Latvian women talking about what it means to them to be a woman, to be feminine and what meaning a ‘strong woman’ holds in their personal interpretation. I will be developing those into a movement script together with a mentor and three dancers.
Krystal: I’m also leading a project ‘The Exploration of the Greater Accessibility of Whimsy’. This project is funded by the Arts Council Wales’ stabilisation grant, Welsh Government and the National Lottery. Throughout this project I will explore the many ways of redeveloping my dance theatre show for family audiences ‘Whimsy’ to make it more accessible to D/deaf and Hard of Hearing audiences. And I’m in the editing process of a screen dance film I wrote, choreographed and directed ‘Daughters of the Sea’ commissioned by Ffilm Cymru’s Ffolio project in collaboration with BBC Arts, BBC Wales and Arts Council Wales.
Where can our readers find out more about you?
Kokoro Arts – Twitter/Instagram/Facebook @Kokoroartsltd
Gundija – Twitter @gundija_a https://vimeo.com/user10961586
Krystal – Instagram/Twitter @Krystalslowe
https://www.amam.cymru/krystalslowe
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