VIRTUAL MEMORIES INTERVIEW

TALK, TALK, TALK
A few weeks ago I had a chat that happened to be an interview with Gil Roth for his Virtual Memories Show. 

Curious about the origins of my Pathology Laffs series? How about some opinions on how people learn, or strategies for making science funny? Maybe you're curious about my past dance career. Follow this link to Virtual Memories, click on my interview, and brace yourself for an hour of fun! (The first 12 minutes are an interview with writer Paul Di Filippo) My Interview (#154) starts at minute 12:45 on the download.

I thought it might be fun to post some images and links to accompany my conversation with Gil. Here's your program!

MINUTE 12:45 MY BIO AND INTRODUCTION

Dura Mater (Dance and Anatomy Projects before 2010)

Marymount Manhattan Dance Department

The Cinematologist

Integrative Medicine Service at MSKCC

MINUTE 14:20 CARTOONISTS AND DRAWING INJURIES

Me from our last visit to the Center for Cartoon Studies

First Aid, part 2 of my self care series.

MINUTE 18:20 THE PHYSICAL STRESSES EFFECTING CARTOONISTS

From (No) Pain!

MINUTE 21:20 THE CHALLENGES OF TEACHING GOOD HABITS

It's much easier to teach people interested in what you have to say. 

The trick is to find a way to get disinterested people interested!

MINUTE 23:35 MY HISTORY WITH COMICS AND SCI FI

Welcome to my 10-year-old-world!

Andre Norton, Dark Piper

My Sci Fi tastes have matured, I guess.

Love these guys! (James SA Corey)

MINUTE 26:00 GROWING UP IN A WORLD OF NERDS

Dragon etching from Junior High.

MINUTE 30:30 HOW PATHOLOGY LAFFS AND LOUISE THE LOUSE CAME INTO BEING

The gag cartoon that started it all.

The earliest Carousel Cartoon Slideshow poster I could find. 

My illustration is the cancerous mice, bottom right.

MINUTE 35:00 DANCE, PERFORMING, DANCING COMPARED TO DRAWING

This pic got me a page in Dance Magazine.

For more about past dance projects see DuraMater.org.

MINUTE 41:00 NEEDLEWORK, MEDICAL IMAGERY, AND COMICS

Two in-progress pieces I will be submitting to 4Panel.

The bottom images are from a SciArt Center workshop.

Catherine's Knee, photo by Tom Henning.

MINUTE 52:37 TEACHING ANATOMY: BACKGROUND, VISUALIZING ANATOMY, SPECULATIVE ANATOMY

Joan Reilly created some incredible anatomy images based on class homework.

Drawing on a body helps us visualize structures under the skin.

MINUTE 59:30 MORE ABOUT SELF-CARE FOR ARTISTS

WOW! YOU MADE IT! TAKE A BREAK.

BIO(S)

ARTS
Kriota Willberg has a BA in Dance: Performance and Choreography from Northeastern Illinois University, and an MFA in Interdisciplinary Arts from Goddard College. Through drawing, writing, performance, and needlework she explores the intersection of body sciences with creative practice.

Credited by Deborah Jowitt as having "terrific choreographic ideas" and "a fine wit", Willberg made dances for her company, Dura Mater, as well as theater groups, film, and commercial projects. Willberg’s films include a dance mockumentary, The Bentfootes (co-directed with Todd Alcott), and the Busby Berkeley parody, Sunscreen Serenade. Willberg has written about dance and stage combat for The Fightmaster, and has curated dance film programs. She is a co-founder of U Move, an online video dance film festival. In New York, she teaches anatomy in the dance department at Marymount Manhattan College. Her ballerina tattoo was featured in Dance Magazine.

These days Willberg writes, draws, needlepoints, and performs about body-oriented sciences. Her blog, thecinematologist.blogspot.com examines medical themes through the lens of Hollywood films. Her most recent performance, Anatomy Kitchen, was presented at Dixon Place Theater. Her mini comic, (NO) PAIN!, is about injury prevention for cartoonists and drawers, generally. She has performed her gag cartoon slideshows, Pathology Laffs in R. Sikoryak’s Carousel at venues around the US, and has presented lectures as The Cinematologist for Adult Education, and Kevin Geeks Out. Feel free to peruse this blog for examples of her needlework, drawings and other visual elements. 

Kriota Willberg/Dura Mater dance and film projects have received support from The American Antiquarian Society (Artist's Research Fellowship), the Brooklyn Arts Exchange (BAX), Dixon Place Theater (Mondo Cane! commission), the Experimental Media and Performing Arts Center (EMPAC), the Franklin Furnace Fund for Performance, the Manhattan Community Arts Fund (MCAF), Performance Space 122, and The Puffin Foundation. 

TEACHING
Described by one of her students as “Lots of fun and freakishly knowledgeable,” Kriota Willberg teaches anatomy classes for Pilates and yoga programs in New York and nationally. She has taught anatomy in the dance departments of Marymount Manhattan College, Bard College, and NYU (Dance Education), and anatomy for cartoonists and artists at The Center For Cartoon Studies, the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Arts, and the Alliance for the Visual Arts. She also taught pathology and massage techniques at the Swedish Institute College of Health Sciences. 


OTHER EMPLOYMENT
As a massage therapist, Willberg has worked for the NY Giants Football team and a variety of athletes and dancers. She and her business partner Rick Sharpell maintained an office at the Integrative Care Center, affiliated with the Hospital for Special Surgery. Currently she is a massage therapist at the Bendheim Integrative Medicine Center at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, but it would be a mistake to assume her opinions reflect the views of MSKCC. 

EDUCATION 

Kriota received certification as a Massage Therapist from the Chicago School of Massage Therapy, a B. A. from Northeastern Illinois University in Dance: Performance and Choreography, an MFA in Interdisciplinary Arts from Goddard College, and is a Licensed Massage Therapist in New York State. She has accumulated over 1,000 hours as an assistant/instructor (plus certification) with Jim Hackett's Clinical Sports Massage certification program. Kriota completed the Swedish Institute of Allied Health and Sciences' Personal Training program, and studied with Judith Walker, Sally Fitt, and Irene Dowd. Kriota has studied stage combat with Joe Travers/Swordplay, and has passed Society of American Fight Directors proficiency exams in broadsword, unarmed, and singlesword techniques.