Our History
DACP was founded by Kathy Coleman, Erik Ferguson, and Jody Ramey in January of 2005 as a way to support and expand upon a number of inclusive and mixed-abilities dance events that have been occurring in Portland since 2002.
Our Mission
The mission of the Disability Art and Culture Project (DACP) is to further the artistic expression of people with both hidden and visible disabilities.
We view disability as a natural and valuable variation of the human form. We believe affirmative disability identity is intertwined with racial, gender, social, and economic justice.
DACP accomplishes this mission by supporting the creative expression of people with disabilities. DACP utilizes the performing arts as a method of examining disability in relation to society. DACP also supports established and emerging artists, as well as the community at large, in developing knowledge and expression of disability culture and pride.
Our Staff
Kathy Coleman, Artistic Director, is a DanceAbility instructor and has prior dance experience with the New Dance Company of Stockton, California, which included studying modern dance and expressive movement arts. She conceived of the Disability Art and Culture Project not only as a way to support movement arts, but also to foster affirmative disability identity in individuals and the community. Kathy has a Masters in Social Work with a concentration in Disability Studies. The core of her artistic work is centered on themes of disability from a social relations perspective. She uses text and movement to portray lived experiences of cross disability realities and dreams. She does not shy away from difficult or dark truths which, in her view, hold their own beauty. She incorporates bodies and ways of moving to stretch the audience’s view of dance and the possibilities of an inclusive society.
Jane Sleeper Gravel, Ph.D., Grants and Evaluations, is a collaborator/writer whose focus is on translating disability experiences into language for public discussion. She has worked with the Disability Art and Culture Project since 2005, writing grants and conducting evaluations for the Disability Pride Art and Culture Festivals and Inclusive Arts Vibe. She also has worked with the National Black Disability Coalition (formerly the National Minorities with Disabilities Coalition), collaborating with founder Jane Dunhamn, serving on the Board, and participating in the 2010 Black Disabled Leadership Summit. Jane has taught graduate courses in qualitative research design and in Disability Studies at Portland State University. Her interests are in building disability culture, examining the multiple contexts of impairment, and promoting social change.
Aireen Joven, Disability Arts and Justice Organizer, has worked as an organizer with Disability Art and Culture Project since February 2012. She will be graduating from the California Institute of Integral Studies in May 2012 where she has studied Ecofeminist Philosophy And Activism and the intersections of identity, culture, spirituality, sustainability, and community activism. She earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Studio Arts and Photography from Barat College of DePaul University, and has been a part of Portland’s arts community since moving here in 2009. She is grateful for the opportunity to work with DACP in engaging the arts as a tool for social change.
