AZ DRAGONEERS
openAIR Residents
August - November 2016
Dragon Tank is a long-term, multinational and omni-cultural project, designed for the broadest outreach and community involvement. The project combines the experience of interdisciplinary artists to share the story of Quetzalcoatl, an ancient Mesoamerican legend. The Aztecs considered Quetzalcoatl a patron of the dawn, merchants, arts, and crafts. To the Maya, the plumed serpent was also seen as a mediator between the sky and the underworld, due to its features of both a bird and a snake. In addition, the Quetzal bird was a sacred animal, its blue-green tail feathers symbolizing the sky and vegetation and its bright scarlet-colored chests representing fire.
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During their residency the AZ Dragoneers will further develop the contstruction of the dragon, research best movement practices, and create an evening of activity in the courtyard at Mesa Arts Center.
Nathaniel Jack Greene is an award winning animated puppet film maker, producer, animator, designer, illustrator, sculptor, programmer, consultant, philosopher, inventor, engineer, futurist and researcher whose life mission is to improve the human condition.
RuthAnne Greer believes that sewing is architecture. The weave, warp and drape of materials demands an attention to the directionality of the original fabric creation. This horizontal and vertical interlacing creates the final “drape” or movement of the piece.
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Alex Kohli is an Emmy(R) Award winning animator, composer and musician. He has been an active supporter and community organizer of Phoenix area arts and culture events since 2004.
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Susan Bendix is a professional dancer, choreographer, improvisational artist, and Zen practitioner who has danced both nationally and internationally, worked as an artist with Arizona Commission on the Arts, the Phoenix Office of Arts and Culture, and as a Wolf Trap artist in early childhood education. Her dance focus includes concentrated work in Action Theater improvisation, theater, technology, and site specific choreography. She works with a broad range of populations from inner city youth, incarcerated youth, gifted youth, university students, public health entities, and those in the corporate sector. Susan is the recipient of a 2015 Project Grant from the Arizona Commission on the Arts to develop a movement and expressive arts based program for those dealing with grief and loss.
