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Surface TechnologiesTo expect, anticipate, plan, or imagine creatively is to be aware of surfaces that do not exist or events that do not occur but that could arise or be fabricated within what we call the limits of possibility.
- JJ Gibson, The Ecological Approach to Visual Perception, pg 44.
Inspired by Gibson’s work on perception, this workshop will approach Contact Improvisation from the perceptive of the surface(s) of contact between bodies. Each day will begin with technical solo body material drawn from Material for the Spine, Flying Low, and my own somatically-inspired research to increase awareness and movement potential. Transitioning outwards, we will use the 4 Heavenly Winds* as a point of departure, we will examine the intra-relationship 3 kinds of shapes: the shape of contact surface with the floor, the shape of the solo body, and the shape of the contact surface
between bodies. By focusing on the surface(s) of contact, rather than momentum, gravity, vocabulary, the duet, and so on, the aim is to become aware of surfaces that do not exist (yet) and thusly allow events to arise that are beyond our current limits of possibility.
*The 4 Heavenly Winds
Moving Shape - Moving Space
Static Shape - Static Space
Static Shape - Moving Space
Moving Shape - Static Shape
About Andrew Wass
A dancer and researcher, Andrew Wass blurs the boundaries between empirical inquiry and embodied experience. With a background in Biochemistry from UC San Diego and a PhD in Dance from Texas Woman’s University, Wass situates his inquiries in the intersection of philosophy, cognitive science, and process-oriented concert dance. He has explored and taught contemporary technique, Contact Improvisation, and Ensemble Thinking for over two decades across Europe, Asia, and the U.S. He frames movement as both a site of investigation and a generative medium, dissolving the divide between analytic method and lived sensation. Wass has performed with dance luminaries Jess Curtis, Ray Chung,Nancy Stark Smith, Nina Martin, Kirstie Simson, Ka Rustler, and Chris Aiken. An avid collaborator, he is a member of the Lower Left Performance Collective, based in Marfa, TX. His performance work has been produced at venues such as Danspace at St. Marks, Martin Gropius Bau, Hamburger Bahnhof, Museum for Contemporary Art, Sushi Performance and Visual Art, the Crowley Theater, and La Jolla, Museum of Contemporary Art.
Wass completed an MA in Solo/Dance/Authorship at the Hochschulübergreifendes Zentrum für Tanz, Berlin. During his studies and for 6 years after that, he taught composition, yoga, and contact improvisation to the undergraduate students. In 2024, he completed his PhD in Dance at Texas Woman’s University. His research investigated solo improvised movement in relation to concepts from cognitive science, phenomenology, psychology, and philosophy, developing a substantive theory about change in the moment. Since 2012 Wass has been collaborating with saxophonist Dr. Simon Rose. They have performed in venues around Berlin, presented at Jahrestagung der Gesellschaft für Tanzforschung, and had a research residency at University of the Arts Graz, Austria with Professor Deniz Peters.
ensemblethinking.org
wasswasswass.com
lowerleft.org
Practical Information
📅 WHEN?
13–15 Nov 2026
FRI: 6–9pm
SAT: 10am–5pm
SUN: 10am–4pm
📍 WHERE?
Kontakt Budapest Studio
FREEDOM, Freeszfe House
Szabolcs u. 27., 2nd floor
Budapest, 1134, Hungary
💰 WORKSHOP CONTRIBUTIONS
🐦 Early Bird – registration and deposit payment by 24/09/2026
65,000 HUF / 180 EUR
🎟️ Regular price
75,000 HUF / 210 EUR
💃 Professionals / Dancers / Teachers / Social
Registration and deposit payment by 24/09/2026
60,000 HUF / 165 EUR
💳 A non-refundable deposit of 15,000 HUF / 40 EUR is required for all bookings.
Payment can be made in cash at Kontakt Budapest events or via bank transfer (Revolut).
📝 REGISTRATION
Please fill out this form to register:
https://forms.gle/PvQwf993d9yxHCWq5
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Event venue
Kontakt Budapest Stúdió, Szabolcs u 27.,Budapest, Hungary
Tickets
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