Ayako Kato

Started in 1998 by dancer Ayako Kato and musician Jason Roebke, Art Union Humanscape creates music and dance performances that vary from duos to ensemble works. As a duo, Kato and Roebke have performed in the United States, Japan, and Europe. In 2007, Art Union Humanscape and cornet player Josh Berman received the Crosscut sound and movement collaboration grant from Experimental Sound Studio and Links Hall. improv improv

Ayako Kato is a dancer and choreographer originally from Yokohama, Japan. She was selected for the Chicago Dancemakers Forum Lab Artist Award to present Ten Nights Dream: Sound and Movement Mandala in 2008 as the culmination of her Sound and Movement Ten Nights Dream Series (Tokyo in 2004 and 2005, Chicago in 2007). In 2006, she created Land the land -9, a peace of idea and performed in Chicago and Tokyo. Her works has been presented at International Series of Die Pratze Dance Festival in Tokyo, Japan, Dance Theater Workshop's Fresh Tracks, Joyce Soho in New York City, Percussive Arts Society International Convention 2003, Links Hall, Chicago Cultural Center and other venues. She is a former LinkUp performer in residence at Links Hall and DanceBridge artist in residence funded by the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs. Having classical ballet background in Japan, Kato started to receive her modern dance training since 1996 in the United States and received MFA in dance from the University of Michigan in 1998. Kato has also trained herself in Tai-Chi, Noh Theater dance, and butoh. Her experimental dance works focus on creating space of furyu, being as it is.Her interdisciplinary collaborators include Yuji Miyao (artist), Haruo Higuma (video artist), musicians such as Michiyo Yagi (koto), Stephen Rush (live electronics), and Brian Labycz (electronics, koto). She also improvised with musicians such as Michael Zerang (percussion), Jim Baker (piano), Megumu Nishino (taiko), Taku Sugimoto (guitar), Toshimaru Nakamura (no-input mixing board), Haco (voice, electronics) and Tetuzi Akiyama (guitar) and Jorrit Dijkstra (saxophone).

Jason Roebke is a bassist and composer living in Chicago. He is active in the groups tigersmilk (Rob Mazurek and Dylan van der Schyff), The Valentine Trio (Fred Lonberg-Holm and Frank Rosaly), Terminal 4 (Fred Lonberg-Holm, Jeb Bishop, Ben Vida), and his own Rapid Croche (Aram Shelton and Tim Daisy). Roebke is also a frequent collaborator with visitors to Chicago. He has shared the stage with Paul Lytton, Axel Dörner, and Wolter Wierbos. Elsewhere, Roebke has performed with François Houle, Han Bennink, Marc Ducret, Tim Barnes and others. While in Japan, he has also performed with musicians Taku Sugimoto, Tetuzi Akiyama, Toshimaru Nakamura, Haco, and Michiyo Yagi.