Sivan Rubinstein

Sivan Rubinstein is a King’s Artist 2019-20, supported by Culture and the Department of Philosophy at King's College London. Her productions aim at uncovering contemporary cultural issues in order to facilitate public conversations. In two of her most recent works “Orbit” and “Migration through Dance”, she proposes dance as a “means to explore the possibilities of a different kind of world”.

In “Orbit”, part of Rubinstein’s Generation Z King’s residency, the artist focuses on the human experience of climate change. Rubinstein leads a five-minutes movement class on how to feel and imagine ourselves in connection with our body. The artist guides the participants through a re-appropriation of the space occupied by one’s body and an increased awareness of the surroundings. By feeling in tune with the place that one materially occupies, one can finally reconnect with the planet, the ultimate and only human home.

“Migration through dance” is a series of productions, workshops and research-led experiences reflecting on the issues of borders, maps and migration. For this series, Rubinstein collaborated with various dancers, musicians, designers researchers, academic partner Sarah Fine and with an international audience. The interdisciplinary approach facilitated a deep and fruitful discussion on controversial topics, which usually polarise the socio-political debate. In order to address a series of questions -- what constitutes a border or a country? What is it to exist in a body? What does it mean to feel at home in a country, or in a body, or in the planet as a whole? -- Rubinstein produced pieces that explore the way in which artists represent maps visually. The potential to put in practice a world without political borders has also been investigated in workshops led by Rubinstein and Fine, in which participants were asked to contribute from their own experiences and feelings, move and use their body in a creative way. 

Sivan Rubinstein’s collaboration with King’s College London continues with her more recent participation in At Home in Cultural London, a six-week online extracurricular module, offered to all students across King’s who are looking for innovative stimuli, opportunities for critical thinking and interdisciplinary learning methods. Rubinstein and Dr. Fine feature together in the week on Art and Activism, where they continue the dialogue on migration and climate change. She is also participating in Kneading Knowledge, an arts and research collaboration between the Arts & Humanities Research Institute (AHRI) and the charity Migrateful, which offers King’s students and staff the chance to participate in online cookery classes that led by Migrateful’s chefs.