Slippery Art Project
Oktawia Ścibior and Samory Ba are Paris-based artists who create experimental choreographic and visual works, developed from in-depth gestural research with the medium of skating.
Initially trained as high-level figure skaters, they exploit the phenomenon of gliding, and its ability to enable supernatural movements of human bodies in space, to create singular choreographic experiences.
Actively involved in the emergence of a contemporary approach to skating, they both work with the pioneering Canadian company Le Patin Libre.
Their creations have been presented at La Briqueterie CDCN du Val-de-Marne, the National Arts Centre in Ottawa (CAPSULE Festival), Le Générateur, Micadanses, Théâtre de la Ville – Sarah Bernhardt, and the Birmingham Dance Festival.
Oktawia Ścibior
Oktawia Ścibior is an artist-skater and choreographer, born in Warsaw, Poland, and residing in Paris, France. For 15 years, she trained as a high-level figure skater, winning a bronze medal at the Polish National Championships in 2003.
After her athletic career, she pursued studies in physics and bioinformatics, obtaining Master’s degrees in both disciplines. Alongside her academic career, she studied jazz dance at the National Center of Culture in Poland and was engaged as a professional skater in numerous ice shows across Europe.
In 2013, she discovered contemporary skating through the works of the company Le Patin Libre. Since then, she has been committed to developing a contemporary approach to skating, recognizing the vast potential of this medium for artistic exploration. In 2016, she founded Slippery Art Project, an association aiming to foster the emergence of artistic creations via skating. This has led her to collaborate with several artists on various contemporary skating projects in France.
Since 2018, she has been a performer in Le Patin Libre’s Murmuration. She also collaborates closely with Samory Ba, with whom she researches slipped movement in rollerblades.
Samory Ba
Samory Ba is a French artist-skater and choreographer of Senegalese origin. A high-level figure skating competitor, then a professional skater with several renowned ice show companies, he has always been fascinated by the unprecedented choreographic possibilities afforded by skating.
In 2010, he became one of the founding members of the company Le Patin Libre, a collective of a handful of innovative artist-skaters based in Quebec. Together, they embark on a long process of artistic research and lay the foundations for a modern approach to skating.
In 2014, they created the piece Vertical Influences, which had its world premiere as part of the Dance Umbrella Festival in London (UK). The piece receives a 5-star review from The Guardian newspaper, and quickly enters the programming of prestigious arts presenters such as Théâtre de la Ville de Paris, Holland Dance Festival and Canada’s National Arts Centre. With Le Patin Libre, Samory Ba also co-created the pieces Threshold (2018) and Murmuration (2022), which met with international success and helped democratize contemporary skating.
Since 2019, Samory Ba has also been collaborating with Oktawia Ścibior on various research and creative projects, exploring the artistic potential of skating as a medium, beyond the current limits of form.