GLASGOW, SCOTLAND
About Saffy
she / her
A socially-engaged dance artist of British-Egyptian heritage, working across performance, expanded choreography, research, curation and facilitation — for nineteen years and counting.
From Bodies of Water · Image, Julia Bauer
THE PRACTICE
Resonance, listening, and the more-than-human.
Saffy trained as a young person in musical theatre, ballet and drama at the BRIT School and Betty Wivell Academy in London, then in contemporary dance at The Space, Dundee, followed by the BA Dance Theatre programme at Trinity Laban, London.
Her work is interdisciplinary, centred on embodied practices of resonance and listening, and informed by somatic influences and improvisation. Her sensory choreographic practice explores connections between ecology, wellbeing, regeneration and soft activism to deepen and restore the relationship with ourselves, each other, and the rest of nature.
Collaboration is at the heart of her work — with other artists and communities, other species and living entities, materials, objects and places. She draws on practices such as walking, citizen science, mark-making and writing, sculpture, sound and conversation, together with movement, dance and gestures of ritual. Natural cycles and seasons inspire Saffy, offering temporal and thematic frameworks to relate with.
Passionate about inclusion, care, and environmental and social justice. Woven through everything she makes.
FROM STITCHING SOFT MATTER BY SIMON WHITEHEAD · IMAGE, JACK WRIGLEY
SETTINGS & COMMISSIONS
From woodlands to nightclubs.
COMMUNITY PERFORMANCE · REMEMBERING TOGETHER
COMMISSIONED BY
Glasgow Life (Artist in Communities), South East Dance, CCN Le Havre, Tramway, Science Gallery London, UZ Arts, The Touring Network with The Work Room (BRAW rural touring), Dansefestival Barents, Greenspace Scotland, National Theatre of Scotland, The Byre St Andrews, Artlink Central, North Ayrshire Council, Creative Scotland, and Arts Council England.
MEMBERSHIPS & ROLES
Artist member of The Work Room. Cove Park Associate. Currently Associate Artist with Independent Arts Projects.
OTHER ROLES & COMMISSIONS
Beyond her own projects.
Alongside choreographic and community work — and sometimes performing in her own projects — Saffy works in a range of collaborative roles.
Performer
In recent years, with Simon Whitehead (Re-pair: soft matter), Lisa Fannen (Return), Aya Kobayashi & Monika Smekot (Wheel See), and SERAFINE1369 (Glorious, Fruitmarket Gallery).
Movement Director
For varied theatre productions, with directors and writers such as Annie George, Sara Shawaari, Caitlin Skinner and Brigid Larmour.
Mentor & creative companion
Recently with Rose McCormack (emerging artist, Clyde Bioregion Residency), Julia McGhee (The Morrich Project) and Gail Sneddon.
Education & creative learning
Delivering for a wide range of organisations across the arts and other sectors, colleges and universities — and co-facilitating projects led by other artists, such as Joanna Young's Dixon Community Sensory Collective (supported by Independent Arts Projects, working with adults with dementia).
Sector development
From facilitating networks and focus groups to advocacy work. Saffy was a board member of The Work Room in Scotland for six years, and co-chair for four.
Interested in commissioning, presenting, or collaborating?
Photo credits — Julia Bauer, Kirsty Somerville, Claire Pençak, Lucas Kao, Macrobert Arts, Anne Sproul, and Jack Wrigley (images from Stitching Soft Matter by Simon Whitehead).