Artist Spotlight – Valerie Kosnevich
Valerie Kosnevich is a dance artist, choreographer, and dance educator. She started her training in commercial and jazz, dance and later trained in ballet, modern, and contemporary styles. Valerie has danced in the repertory of world-renowned choreographers, such as Nacho Duato, Barak Marshal, Eyal Behar, Ohad Naharin, and Sharon Eyal. She earned her B.F.A. in Dance from the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance. Since then, she has been dancing as a freelance artist and working with dance educational establishments. In 2018 Valerie moved to New York, where she continued her dance career. She worked with New-York based choreographers Igal Perry, Norbert De La Cruz III, Guanglei Hui and with many European based artists. Currently Valerie is dancing with the Peridance Contemporary Dance Company in New York City. Heading photo by Dez Santana.
What or who inspired your interest in the arts?
My interest in arts was inspired by the unlimited world of the small discoveries and experiences that have kept me learning throughout my dance journey. I really love to learn new things and feel that I am moving forward every time, with each small step. The opportunities in the dance world are enormous, especially with the use of human imagination and creativeness.
What was the creative journey that has brought you to where you are today?
The creative journey is a constant journey of ups and downs. I am still learning how to fall smoothly, and then rise again to a higher level. It is a constant fight. A fight not in the physical sense of the word – sometimes it is so small, but so hard to win. My main fight is with myself. Dance is considered to be the world of competition, but for me it is not about the competition anymore. It is about finding myself, my own world, and having enough knowledge and information to share it with other people, and being able to show them the world from a different perspective.
How has the COVID-19 crisis affected your creative life?
During the pandemic I had time to concentrate on myself and who I am as a dance artist. Mostly, I realized that dance is inside of me, and not a separate part that I need to connect with. It was a real joy to create two dance works, “Destiny” and “Solace,” and to share them with others – and being able to perform outside, on the street, while all the performing venues were shut down.
What are you working on now?
Right now, I am working on my new dance piece. I love to create and keep doing it throughout the year. I dedicate some of my time to the discovery of who am I as a dance artist, but I also consider the bigger picture, and how I – through dance – can help others connect, communicate, and make the dance art a world of free expression.
What do you need as an artist today?
As an artist today, I need some peacefulness and silence. The dance world is consistently changing and with careful listening and attention to myself and to my creation I can keep up with everything that is happening, while staying in the flow.
