Van Huynh Company

17/04/2026

Trailer drop!

Graffiti Bodies XV
Concept: Dam Van Huynh
Choreography: Dam Van Huynh in collaboration with Elaine Mitchener
Performance and Vocal improvisations: Elaine Mitchener
Music, Sound & Lights: Michael Picknett
Production Management: Michael Picknett
Original soundtrack: Mobius by Ian Tang
Film: Wilfred Wong

Filmed at Rich Mix, London
Saturday 14 March 2026
Part of Black Athena Festival

A new Certain Blacks commission with further support from Centre 151

27/03/2026

“In a world where it feels like injustice and oppression repeats itself in different guises with every news story and social media post, Graffiti Bodies XV reminds us that amongst the multiple layers of sh*ttery, there are always layers upon layers of hope, justice and community to look for as well.” Dance art journal
https://danceartjournal.com/2026/03/25/graffiti-bodies-xv-by-dam-van-huynh-elaine-mitchener-michael-picknett/

Graffiti Bodies XV
A new Certain Blacks commission with further support from Centre 151

📸 Sarah Hickson

20/03/2026

A huge thank you to everyone who came to watch Graffiti Bodies XV last Saturday at Rich Mix London as part of Certain Blacks' Black Athena Festival. Thank you to Certain Blacks for commissioning this piece and giving us their full trust. Thank you to Centre 151 for being our creative home. Thank you to Elaine Mitchener and Mike Picknett for giving their all and being the best collaborators one can wish for.

The first review is out:
“Graffiti Bodies XV is more of a death disco, a thought-provoking if not utterly disquieting commentary on the long history of police brutality in the black Diaspora.” Jazzwise
https://www.jazzwise.com/content/review/graffiti-bodies-a-requiem-for-the-wrongfully-erased

Black Athena Festival continues this weekend and in April, grab the last tickets!

📸 Alessandro Paiano

07/03/2026

Only one week to go before Graffiti Bodies XV hits the stage at Rich Mix London on Saturday 14 March, 7.30pm. Get your tickets now!

Inspired by Jean Michel Basquiat’s 1981 painting La Hara, the work responds to police brutality against marginalised urban communities.
The piece is performed by Elaine Mitchener, with concept by Dam Van Huynh and sound by Michael Picknett.

"If I can't dance, I don't want to be part of your revolution." Emma Goldman

A new commission by Certain Blacks with further support from Centre 151

https://richmix.org.uk/events/graffiti-bodies-xv/

📸 Jean-Michel Basquiat, 1984 Photography by Lee Jaffe.
Copyright. All Rights Reserved Courtesy of LW Archives
📸 Undiscovered Genius of the Mississippi Delta (Detail) by Jean-Michel Basquiat, 1983

21/02/2026

We can't wait to see you all on Saturday 14 March, 7.30pm at Rich Mix for Graffiti Bodies XV as part of Certain Blacks' Black Athena Festival. Grab your tickets now!

Come to watch Elaine Mitchener perform in this new work by Dam Van Huynh in collaboration with Elaine and Michael Picknett, mixing movement, sound, voice, poetry and responding to Jean-Michel Basquiat’s work La Hara (1981) which addresses the police brutality faced by marginalised urban communities in New York in the 1980s.

'At that point, [an artist] was somebody who could draw, but my ideas have changed since then. Now I see an artist as something a lot broader than that.’ Jean-Michel Basquiat

A new Certain Blacks commission with further support from Centre 151

📸 Elaine Mitchener / Photo by Dimitri Djuric
La Hara by Jean-Michel Basquiat

https://richmix.org.uk/events/graffiti-bodies-xv/

16/02/2026

Sensored Issue 4 by Tom Selmon is just out!

16/02/2026

Shout-out to our collaborator Photographer/Filmmaker Tom Selmon who has just released Issue 4 of Sensored. A huge thank you to Tom for including us in this latest issue of the magazine. We are very proud to see our work featured amongst such gorgeous pictures and artworks. Thank you to Emma Russell for the time spent chatting with Dam and for such a sensitive cover.

“That table is large enough for us to be there and present to have these very important conversations on art and where it’s going.”

You can purchase your copy here:
https://sensored.uk/collections/sensored/products/sensored-4-pre-sale

📸 Tom Selmon - Exquisite Noise

09/02/2026

We are over the moon to share the news that we have received the Artistic Innovation in Dance Award 2026 as part of One Dance UK Awards. We are deeply moved and humbled by this recognition coming from our peers amongst the UK dance sector.
We extend our respect, love and care to the two other outstanding organisations/artists nominated alongside us: Anjali Dance Company and Lisa Simpson Inclusive Dance Ltd
We dedicate this award to all the artists, venues, funders, friends and allies who have played a part in supporting the work and research across the past 17 years.
Thank you to One Dance UK and to the judges for giving us this platform and visibility.
Thank you to the person/s who nominated us for the One Dance UK Awards for watching over us and writing this beautiful description of what we do:
"Dam has pushed the boundaries of the art form with his working methodology, combining a multitude of performative practices. With each new work he has challenged, developed, and extended his own choreographic language by fusing movement ideas with aural stimuli and environmental sounds, shaping space with the body and utilising vocal sound as acts of protest, activism, and universal healing. His cross-disciplinary approach is steeped in a deep knowledge of the contemporary dance canon alongside non-Western dance forms, also with a knowledge of critical theory and post-colonial studies and its importance in the future development of contemporary dance practice."

📸 Tom Selmon (Picture 4)

04/02/2026

在一切行程如旋風席捲而過之後，甚至看不見能慢下來的跡象，於是躲回文字裡，回到閱讀之中。
　
場景拉回到去年十月下旬，在藝術家杰樺老師的牽引下，開啟了與英國 Centre 151 和 Van Huynh Company 的駐村交流計劃。Dam作為涴莎首位駐村藝術家造訪了臺南；返回英國後，仍在百忙中寫下了駐地期間的所思所感，與我們分享。
　
僅相隔數月，如今回看文末 Dam 的回應，千頭萬緒在時間飛快、略顯狼藉的現實裡好像得以安放，找到了一絲平靜。
　
After an intense period of activity, with little opportunity to slow down, we returned to words — and to reading — as a way of pausing and reflecting.

In late October last year, guided by the artist Jeff Hsieh, a residency exchange programme was initiated with the UK’s Centre 151 and Van Huynh Company. Dam visited Tainan as Wan Sha’s first artist-in-residence. Following his return to the UK, he took time, despite a full schedule, to reflect on his residency experience and share those reflections with us.
　　
Revisiting Dam’s closing words only a few months later, they offer a quiet sense of grounding — a moment of calm and clarity within the speed and complexity of everyday life.
　
▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁▁
　
❍ 交會．凝練．共享 —
藝術家 Dam Van Huynh 於臺南涴莎的駐村回顧❐
━ #閱讀舞蹈
　
文｜黃煒丹 Dam Van Huynh
圖｜駐村期間非正式公開分享會現場　

　 　　
#「我甚至覺得，如果我在臺南佇立夠久，最終就能遇見整個世界。」 “ I felt that if I stood still in Tainan long enough, I would eventually encounter the world.”
　　
　
閱讀全文⇲
https://www.wansha.com.tw/ReadWatchListen/article/64

30/01/2026

Choreographer Dam Van Huynh will present Graffiti Bodies XV in collaboration with vocalist, movement artist, composer Elaine Mitchener and sound artist Michael Picknett on Saturday 14 March 2026, 7.30pm at Rich Mix London as part of Certain Blacks’ Black Athena Festival.

A ‘performative graffiti’ that transforms the space into a living canvas of collective energy, Graffiti Bodies XV overlays movement, sound art, poetry, sculpture and visual imagery. Responding to Jean-Michel Basquiat’s 1981 painting La Hara addressing police brutality against marginalised urban communities, the performance reflects on the theme of marginalisation through a sensory overload of movement and a cacophony of sound and visual noise. Graffiti Bodies XV urges us to resist the cyclical nature of history and sparks a discussion on who controls the narratives, reminding us that creativity thrives on the streets and amidst community settings.

Commissioned by Certain Blacks with further support from Centre 151

https://richmix.org.uk/events/graffiti-bodies-xv/

📸 Robert Piwko Productions

Graffiti Bodies XV overlays movement, sound art, poetry, sculpture and visual imagery into one mesmerising experience. The piece is inspired by Jean-Michel Basquiat’s work, challenging societal norms and reclaiming power for marginalised groups. This dance and visual art performance urges us to re...

08/12/2025

'Synthetic' was premiered on 8th December 2023 at the Lyric Theatre, The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts 香港演藝學院 - HKAPA, a collaboration between dance and digital art. Hugely proud of what we achieved with our outstanding team of creatives.

Concept and Choreography: Dam Van Huynh
Rehearsal Director: Leila McMillan
Performers: Academy Dance Ensemble
Composer: Ian Tang
Set & Costume Designer: Kitty Kong Hiu-kwan
Lighting Designer: Paul Wong Tsz-chung
Sound Designer: Kyle Li Ka-shing
Video Designer: Dan Fong
Production Manager: Priscilla Tsang Pik-kwan

Commissioned and produced by HKAPA, School of Dance