Rogers Art Loft in Las Vegas Welcomes Performance Artist Mitsu Salmon for Virtual Artist-in-Residenc

ROGERS ART LOFT IN LAS VEGAS WELCOMES PERFORMANCE ARTIST MITSU SALMON FOR VIRTUAL ARTIST-IN-RESIDENCY

Original Performance and Visual Works Artist Brings Japanese Contemporary Dance and Workshop Series to Digital Residency

LAS VEGAS (Feb. 4, 2021) - The Rogers Art Loft at The Lucy, a multi-disciplinary artist-in-residency program dedicated to inclusivity, creativity, and empowerment of artists, welcomes original performance and visual works artist Mitsu Salmon as its second artist-in-residence of 2021. Beginning her seven-week virtually residency Feb. 8, 2021, Salmon’s work with Rogers Art Loft will include leading the community in virtual Butoh, Japanese contemporary dance workshops. Salmon will also offer a virtual artist talk, gallery visit, and final performance entitled Desert Turtle. All events are free, open to the public and virtual. Register for events by visiting www.rogersartloft.com.

Artist Talk - Friday, February 12 from 6:00 – 7:00pm PT Attendees will get to know more about Mitsu Salmon’s past works, artistic process and what she plans to create in residence.

Butoh Dance Workshops - Saturdays, February 27, March 6, 13 and 20 from 11:00am – 12:00pm PT Mitsu Salmon will lead a series of Butoh, Japanese contemporary dance, workshops featuring the use of guided imagery, movement, and structured improvisation. The workshops draw from aspects and the trainings of Butoh and interweaves them with visions and textures of the desert from cacti to fission. The class will start with Noguchi exercises, which foster an experience of the body as water with the goal of encountering and releasing the body. Once bodies and imaginations are opened, the class will go into movement prompts. Students are welcome to modify exercises based on their comfort and inventiveness. The series works well together but also fine as drop-in. All levels welcome. Please wear comfortable clothing.

Studio Visit - Wednesday, March 3 from 2:00 – 2:30pm PT Join Mitsu Salmon on Instagram @rogersartloft for a look into her studio space and get a feel for how she is creating her culminating performance Desert Turtle.

Culminating Event - Desert Turtle - Friday, March 26 from 6:00 – 7:00pm PT Desert Turtle is a solo interdisciplinary sound and movement piece by Mitsu Salmon around ideas of shelter, landscapes, and migration. The performance draws from family history, voice, and geology.

Mitsu Salmon’s mother arrived from the wet and dense city of Fukuoka, Japan to the vast and dry Mojave Desert. She related to the turtle she found in the landscape, hiding in their shells, and traveling with their home on their back. In Japan, a turtle was a symbol for longevity and in the expanse of the Mojave Desert, she felt a sense of infiniteness. But across the mountains, there was the testing of the atomic bomb. As if such a thing still needed testing, she thought.

During the residency at Rogers Art Loft, Salmon will spend time in the Mojave Desert recording an album connected to these histories, places, and the current moment. The album is inspired by Kankyo (ambiance), minimal wave and fossils. The performance will share these songs interwoven with Butoh dance, video, and non-linear storytelling.

“Mitsu Salmon is masterful in her creation of original performances and visual works,” said Ryan Reid, Residency Director. “We are thrilled for her to share her compelling artistic and multi-disciplinary talents with the Las Vegas community and beyond.”

Since launching with its inaugural roster of artists in 2019, The Rogers Art Loft at The Lucy, has welcomed numerous artists from a variety of disciplines and locations to share their creative insight and practice with the Las Vegas community. Even throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, The Rogers Art Loft maintained its steadfast commitment to the support of the arts and artists and successfully pivoted to a virtual format. Recently, the Rogers Art Loft celebrated the completion of its inaugural year with a series of Year One Retrospective virtual events including, a gallery exhibition tour, artist roundtable, performance screening and a video recap showcasing the many highlights from the first full year. The video can be seen by visiting www.rogersartloft.com.

The Rogers Art Loft is set to welcome a total of eight artists in 2021. Adhering with the appropriate health and safety directives of the time, the Artist-in-Residency program will continue either virtually or in-person. Upcoming artists in 2021 include: Zhiwan Cheung, Christopher Salvito and Nicoletta Favari, Jean Fineberg, Susannah Bielak, and Mariana Newhard.

The brainchild of local philanthropist and patron of the arts Beverly Rogers, the Rogers Art Loft is made possible by The Rogers Foundation, dedicated to transforming lives through arts and education in Southern Nevada. For more information and to learn more about each artist, sign up for the Rogers Art Loft email blast at www.rogersartloft.com and follow on Facebook and Instagram.

About Artist Mitsu Salmon Mitsu Salmon creates performance and visual works that fuse multiple disciplines. Her work starts with personal or familial stories and branches out to speak to contemporary issues such as diaspora, labor, and the environment. Salmon received her MFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in 2014, and her undergrad degree from NYU. She was a member of the Butoh dance company Ima Tenko and Kiraza from 2008-2011 in Kyoto, Japan. She has received grants from Chicago Dancemakers Forum and Midwest Nexus. She has participated in artist residencies at Taipei Artist Village (Taiwan), Incheon Art Platform (Korea), Guildhall (NY), and PAM (LA) as well as in Chicago at Links Hall, High Concept Lab, and the Chicago Cultural Center.