Margarita Zafrilla Olayo is an artist, dancer and choreographer balancing across practices, contexts and forms, working with dance, performance, choreographic projects, installation, painting, still and moving-image.
Her choreography, performances, dance and artworks have been presented internationally at Northern Sustainable Futures(Sweden), Loop Video Art Festival (Barcelona), Museum of Contemporary Art of Rome—MACRO, Tate Britain, Siobhan Davies Studios, Independent Dance, Sadler’s Wells, Tate Archive, Tate Modern, Barbican Art Gallery (London), Tanzinitiative (Germany), Ritratti D’Artista (Italy), Zona Maco 2022 (Mexico), and at The 58th Venice Biennale’s Giudecca Art District flagship exhibition, Body as Home.
Since 2019, she has been nurturing a choreographic context & process entitled TiLTING VERTICALITIES, through an ever expanding series of exercises, artworks, experimental dances, and performance iterations—activating peaceful states for shared space within the artworks.
Born in Madrid, she has lived and worked in London since 1999.
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photo Yanis Angel
After realising extended studies in ballet, flamenco, folk and Spanish classical dances and Flamenco in Spain at Real Conservatorio Profesional de Danza in Madrid and independent studies with María de Ávila, she was awarded with a scholarship (Spain & UK) to study completing BA (Hons) and PgDIP in Contemporary Dance and Performance from London Contemporary Dance School and MA Creative Practice from Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music in partneship with Independent Dance and Shioban Davies Studios in South London.
For 20 years Zafrilla Olayo has been leading dance and movement workshops for education, art and non-profit organisations; most recently facilitating movement studies to investigate notions of trust, communication and support at University of Roehampton, Rambert School of Ballet and Contemporary Dance, Royal College of Art, Independent Dance, and Royal School of Speech and Drama in London, Conservatorio Profesional Superior de Danza de Málaga in Spain, The School of Hope’s international art program for young creatives in UK and for thee international grassroots comunity for education OPPi Global in France.
Margarita co-founded the experimental dance research platform Spirals & Horizontal Connections (2012/14), and artists collective La Ventana (2002/2004). She has collaborated as ID Ambassador and volunteering with artist-led organisation Independent Dance (2011-2021).
Zafrilla Olayo has also danced, performed and collaborated in the choreographic projects of Trisha Brown and Gordon Matta-Clark (Barbican Art Gallery), Jonathan Borrow & Matteo Fargion (Siobhan Dance Studios), Florence Peake (YSP Longside Gallery), Tai Shani (Hayward Gallery), DV8 (Tate Modern), Pablo Bronstein (Tate Britain), Lina Lapelyte (DRAFT), Carolyn Roy (Roehampton University), Lizzy Le Quesne (Centre for Dance Research Coventry University),Theo Clinkard (UK tour), Linda Remahl (Northern Sustainable Futures), Frauke Requardt (Sadler’s Wells, Young Vic and The Place Theatre), Franz Erhard Walter (London Frieze Art Fair), Eva Recacha (Spain tour), Aletta Collins (Opera North), Punch Drunk (site specific London), Cally Spooner (Serpentine Sackler Gallery), Richard Alston Dance Company (Joyce Theatre New York), amongst others.
For 20 years Zafrilla Olayo has been leading dance and movement workshops for education, art and non-profit organisations; most recently facilitating movement studies to investigate notions of trust, communication and support at University of Roehampton, Rambert School of Ballet and Contemporary Dance, Royal College of Art, Independent Dance, and Royal School of Speech and Drama in London, Conservatorio Profesional Superior de Danza de Málaga in Spain, The School of Hope’s international art program for young creatives in UK and for thee international grassroots comunity for education OPPi Global in France.
Margarita co-founded the experimental dance research platform Spirals & Horizontal Connections (2012/14), and artists collective La Ventana (2002/2004). She has collaborated as ID Ambassador and volunteering with artist-led organisation Independent Dance (2011-2021).
Zafrilla Olayo has also danced, performed and collaborated in the choreographic projects of Trisha Brown and Gordon Matta-Clark (Barbican Art Gallery), Jonathan Borrow & Matteo Fargion (Siobhan Dance Studios), Florence Peake (YSP Longside Gallery), Tai Shani (Hayward Gallery), DV8 (Tate Modern), Pablo Bronstein (Tate Britain), Lina Lapelyte (DRAFT), Carolyn Roy (Roehampton University), Lizzy Le Quesne (Centre for Dance Research Coventry University),Theo Clinkard (UK tour), Linda Remahl (Northern Sustainable Futures), Frauke Requardt (Sadler’s Wells, Young Vic and The Place Theatre), Franz Erhard Walter (London Frieze Art Fair), Eva Recacha (Spain tour), Aletta Collins (Opera North), Punch Drunk (site specific London), Cally Spooner (Serpentine Sackler Gallery), Richard Alston Dance Company (Joyce Theatre New York), amongst others.