Artist Statement

Currently a third year student at Academy Minerva in Groningen, two elements are recurring in Roza Kootstra’s works: movement and contact. 

Her fascination for movement is linked to her background in dance. Over the years, she studied and discovered multiple dance styles: Argentinian Tango, Salsa, Vogue, Contact Dance, Dumdum Dance, Qi Gong, Alsatian folklore, Hip Hop and Contemporary Dance. Being aware of the limits of her own body, she is in the constant search for the instinctive movement rather than the aesthetic one. The body is becoming an artistic tool and is used to explore the mystery of human connections. She tries to capture and share the precious moments of intimacy and to build personal experiences for the public.

In her quest to understand how strangers can understand each other without words she uses a variety of methods such as stop motion, drawing, video, animation, photography and performance. Being a mediator rather than an artist, she investigates ways to start dialogues and to construct bridges between individuals.