How do we learn more about choreographers? As viewers, we know them through their work; as art critics, we study the context for their creations, learn about their background, and conduct aesthetic analysis of their projects; as fellows in dance research, we identify each piece of work as a milestone in the history of dance, based on its style and the context where it is created. People think of the dances Legacy and Moon Water, when it comes to Hwai-Min Lin, and it is impossible to talk about Li-Zhen Lin, without mentioning two of her Dance Theatre trilogy- Miroirs de Vie and Song of Pensive Beholding. What rings a bell when we think of Ku as a choreographer, that is the very first question to be asked at the A Choreographer: Research Exhibition of Ming-Shen Ku.

Ming-Shen Ku, a winner of the 21st National Award for Arts, whose influence on Taiwan's dance industry is self-evident to dancers, either with or without formal training, researchers, and enthusiasts. Ku is keen on the promotion of Contact Improvisation, putting the art of improvisation into practice, and establishing dance communities for the performance of improvisation. These ongoing efforts allow dances to continuously nourish the land for performance in Taiwan, just as a quiet yet running stream.

Among the many contributions that Ku has made to Taiwan's dance environment, there is a part of her that few people know her as- a choreographer. There may have been signs revealing such an identity from the project for which Ku is known- I Was a Choreographer. By “Was”, does it suggest “no more?” Or, does it imply that Ku is now on her way to become a different kind of choreographer? Should we abandon the conventional pattern for choreography where choreographers always go hand in hand with their work, is it possible that viewers can, thus, have better proximity to Ku’s mindset for dance performance with planning and changes that center on insights for life and chance, movements and images, self and other, and so on?

Ming-Shen Ku
As an active choreographer and dancer, Ming-Shen Ku has settled her base in Taiwan since 1987. Ku's works are influenced by many Western and Eastern dance styles, a merging development from her diverse backgrounds. Since 1991, Ku became deeply involved in Contact Improvisation and introduced it to Taiwan. She founded her dance company "Ku & Dancers" in 1993 to present new works and promote the art of improvisation. "Ku & Dancers" has set their foot print in New York, Australia, Paris, London, China, Korea, Malaysia, and Indonesia. Ku has also been invited as a guest artist to perform and teach in many universities and dance companies around the world. She received Wu San Lien Award, a life time achievement award, in 2009, and the 21st National Award for Arts in 2019. Currently, Ming-Shen Ku serves as a full professor in the Dance School of Taipei National University of the Arts.

Po-Wei Wang
Po-Wei Wang is the artistic director of the Digital Art Foundation, Taiwan. His research interests include Media Theory, History of Contemporary Art, Sociology of Culture and Art, and Art/Science/Technology (AST). Translated Niklas Luhmann´s Liebe als Passion: Zur Codierung von Intimität into Chinese together with Chin-Hui Chang.

Xiang-Jun Fan
Xiang-Jun Fan holds a PhD in Arts at the Dance Institute of Taipei National University of the Arts. She is currently a postdoctoral research fellow at Research Institute for the Humanities and Social Sciences at the National Science and Technology Council. Beyond that Fan works as an educator, a dance dramaturg e.g. for Anarchy Dance Theater and as a resident critic for several festivals, magazines and platforms e.g. 17th Taishin Arts Award. Her research focuses on the development of contemporary dance in Taiwan, body-based creative work, and body culture practice.