AVANT

Klara Łucznik
ORCID iD Plymouth University, UK

Klara Łucznik holds an M.A. in Psychology (Warsaw University, PL) and an M.A. in Choreography and Dance Theory (The F. Chopin University of Music, PL). In her PhD project she explored the shared creative process and the role of group flow in dance practice focusing on improvisation. Her research interests focus on how people collaborate, exchange ideas, and inspire each other while creating together. Having a background in psychology and dance gives her an eclectic, interdisciplinary approach to her studies, as she seamlessly shifts between being a researcher and a dance practitioner. She sees creativity as a highly social process where the quality of collaboration is as much important as having original ideas.

Abigail Jackson
Plymouth University, UK

Abigail Jackson is an PhD candidate with Transtechnology Research at Plymouth University, funded by AHRC's 3D3 Centre for Doctoral Training. Her multidisciplinary research aims to facilitate improvised, responsive, movement sessions, in the development of a creative intervention, for autistic children, with digital mediation embedded in its investigation. This project is aligns with research concerning the affiliation with technology, for the autistic child, which is reflected in her position of SEN Research and Development Associate at The University of Lincoln.

Aska Sakuta
University of Chichester, UK

Aska Sakuta is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Chichester, working on an interdisciplinary research project (Dance/Sports & Exercise Science) focusing on the experience of Flow which appears during meditative movement performance. She holds an M.F.A. from the University of California, Irvine, specialising in improvisation and Eastern movement philosophies, and a B.A. from Waseda University (Japan). Her current research project extends the context of Eastern philosophy to multiple academic fields such as psychology, cognitive science, and neurophenomenology.

Eleonora Siarava
Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece

Eleonora Siarava is choreographer, performer and researcher. She holds an MA in Dance Making and Performance (Distinction) from Coventry University and a BAin Psychology (Greece). Her doctoral thesis is about “The multiple meaning in Abstract Dance: The choreographic synthesis and the possibilities provided by Perception Theories” (AUTH-Department of Theatre). Her research and artistic practice refer to the relationship between aesthetic forms, cognitive principles, moving patterns and kinesthetic empathy. Currently she is making part of her research at Giessen University and the Academy for Performing Arts in Frankfurt. She is the artistic director of Per_Dance, a platform of choreographic research www.per-dance.com