The Movement Research Festival finds its roots in the Improvisation Festival New York (IFNY), initiated in 1992 by Sondra Loring (an MR artist-in-residence at the time) and Julie Carr. For five years (1999-2003), Movement Research hosted the IFNY as one of its programs, under the curation of Programming Director Amanda Loulaki. Four years ago, Movement Research created an artist-curator format, birthing Improvisation is Hard (2004), followed by Open Source (2005).
Beginning in 2006, Movement Research established the festival as a twice-annual event. The fall festival continues to focus on improvisation and is shaped by Movement Research’s programming staff in collaboration with Curatorial Advisors who bring their own interests and ideas to specific festival events. The spring festival is produced by a group of artist-curators which determines the emphasis, shape, and programming. Together, these two approaches allow for a varied investigation and exploration into current artistic concerns, and reflect Movement Research’s mission of valuing artists, their creative process and vital role within society.
