WELCOME.

The past two years have confronted us with Shadow - both personal and collective - on an unprecedented scale. We have donned and shed masks over and over again amid conflict and profound uncertainty. We have been faced with things we could have never imagined, and faced them back with aspects of self we never knew were there. 

 Our workshops are a lovingly constructed container to guide you as you build your own Shadow mask.

They are a structure within which you can make and un-make the courageous
face with which you confront the world. 

They are space to encounter Shadow and step into relationship with the wisdom,
resilience, and joy contained within.

Unlike a traditional therapeutic or coaching environment, which encourages verbal exchange, the focus of Shadow Tender workshops is on creative, embodied, and symbolic self-expression and discovery. This approach is informed by over a decade of experience in teaching visual arts, physical movement, and performing art techniques. 

All levels of makers, movers, and monsters are welcome. 

THIS WORKSHOP IS FOR YOU
IF YOU ARE…

• Craving to move through things that cannot be explained or put into words

• Curious to discover your Shadow’s face and dive deeper into the Shadow archetype

• Wanting to learn more about mask-making and create your own Shadow mask 

• Hungry to to dance, play, and remember your inner strength and deep, unwavering light

• Searching for an intentional container in which your body and your breath can unwind in community with others

WHAT YOU WILL GET
OUT OF THIS COURSE

• Tools and exercises for nervous system resilience, integration, and creative expression

• A chance to slow down and reconnect with your body and your deeper self

• A multidimensional understanding of the Shadow archetype on individual and collective levels

• An opportunity to create and explore your own Shadow mask 

• A facilitated space to ask questions, dialogue, integrate and create in community with others
  

COURSE STRUCTURE & DATES

This is a very special workshop for me: our world and our hearts have undergone tremendous change over the last few years, and I am curious to see how Shadow Tender can best serve and support the kind of healing we are all craving at this time. For this reason, this 2-day workshop has a particular format that differs from how I’ve offered it in the past:

+ DAY 1: Saturday, April 8th: 11:30am to 3:30pm (4 hours)
We will come together to move, play, and create a mask. 

+ DAY 2: Sunday, April 9th: 2pm - 4pm (2 hours)
We will gather and reflect on our experiences and how this work be most relevant for our communities in the present moment. 

To make sure there is plenty of space and attention to go around, this workshop will be capped at 12 participants. For this reason, I am requesting that everybody who wants to attend commits in advance, and is able to participate in both days.

The primary language in this workshop will be English - with support in Russian available  upon request. All crafting materials will be provided. Please wear something you can move in and bring a journal, water bottle, and something to write with. All levels of makers, movers, and monsters are welcome. 

Questions? Please check out our FAQ page or write to me directly.

COST

Tickets are between $25 and $125 per person, depending on financial need. 

Space is limited to 12 people, so I recommend reserving your spot in advance.  
I am requesting that everybody who wants to attend commits to attending both days.

My aim is to make this workshop as accessible as possible to all who wish to be a part of it.
If you would like to participate in this workshop, but pricing is prohibitive for any reason,
you can request a free ticket by contacting me directly.

MEET YOUR INSTRUCTOR

My name is Natalya Kolosowsky (she/her.) I am an artist, facilitator, and educator. 
I am the founder and director of Shadow Tender - an interdisciplinary project and school of thought that invites you to dance with your demons through mask-making and creative expression. 

I was born in Siberia but grew up in the Sonoran desert, which created a life-long interest in bridging worlds that normally remain invisible to each other and navigating realities polarized by a history of antagonism and fear. Drawing on the experiences of being suspended between languages and cultures, I am fascinated by the construction of social and individual “otherness.” I work across multiple media, focusing on visual and motion-based storytelling through costume, performance, and illustration.

I received my classical ballet training under Kee-Juan Han from the School of Ballet Arizona and went on to study and perform in circus arts, butoh, physical theater and puppetry throughout the West Coast of the United States. In 2010, I founded the Anatomia Dance Collective - a performance project focused on the psychological transformation of space through movement and costume. My consequent projects have included collaborations with San Francisco’s City Circus, Flam Chen Pyrotechnic Theater, the Salzburg State Theatre, Michael Curry Design, Degenerate Art Ensemble, and many others. 

I hold a BS in Psychology and a BFA in Visual Communication from the University of Arizona, as well as a MFA in Costume Design from the University of Oregon. I am also currently becoming a certified Buteyko breathwork instructor via Patrick McKeown’s Buteyko Clinic International. My work has been presented in universities, conferences, museums, and theaters around the world.

I am fluent in English and Russian, and offer 1:1 work, teaching, and group facilitation in both languages.

For more information about me, please visit my website here.

PAST WORKSHOPS

WITD, Portland OR
Maskmaking | Movement mini-series December, 2019

WITD, Portland, OR
Maskmaking | Movement mini-series October, 2019

FLOCK Dance Center, Portland, OR
Maskmaking | Movement mini-series, February-March, 2019

FLOCK Dance Center Portland, OR
Maskmaking | Movement Workshop, November 2018

Taipei National University for the Arts, Taiwan
Maskmaking | Movement Workshop, July 2017

HONOR YOUR TEACHERS
RESPECT YOUR ANCESTORS

This work was developed across a variety of spaces - intellectually, temporally, and geographically - which is itself an enormous privilege.

No teacher, no ancestor is perfect or without flaw, yet a constellation of teachers can begin to weave clearer and clearer paths for inquiry shaped by integrity, curiosity, and greater self-awareness. As such - both here, and throughout our workshops -  we openly credit and honor those whose work has become a foundation for this project and teaching methodology:

• Shadow Tender collaborators and co-teachers: Maria Thomas, Magdalena Kaczmarska, and Adam Cooper-Terán

• Eastern European folk dance traditions, especially from Russia, Poland, and Ukraine as taught by Nadia Zubkov and others

• Eastern European and Central Asian folklore and fairytales as passed through oral and written traditions

• The teaching methodology, academic guidance, and insights of La Donna Forsgren, Les Gray, Theresa May, and Alexandra Bonds

• The research of Spee Kosloff, Jeff Greenberg, and other scholars of Terror Management Theory

• The writings and scholarly research of Judika Illes 

• The methodologies of Konstantin Buteyko

• The teachings of butoh artists Diego Piñon, Hiroko & Koichi Tamano, Yumiko Yoshioka, and others

• The communication strategies taught by Kasia Urbaniak at the Academy

• The teachings & writings of Marshall Rosenberg and his theory of Nonviolent Communication

• The psychodramatic approaches of Alejandro Jodorowsky 

• The research of Peter Levine and Somatic Experiencing

• The original writings and theories of Carl G. Jung
  
  

The Shadow Tender project stands in deep reverence and solidarity with the occupied lands and its indigenous communities on which this teaching curriculum has been developed over the years: Chinook, Kalapuya, O’Odham, Pima, and Lenape.