Artemis, Goddess of Archery

Our very own Artemis, Goddess of Archery
Photo Credit: Nityia Przewlocki

Hi my name is Nina, also known as Artemis in the Trojan Horse project. I was born in Seattle and it is Seattle that I still call my home. I’m an office manager for a local heavy equipment company, but my real love are my many hobbies .. belly dancing, fire dancing, kite flying, costuming, tai chi .. and now archery. :~)

As a child I always loved to dance and ballet was my world. Performing with a local children’s ballet company we toured Spain and Portugal for a month one summer long ago. Drinking in the culture of all that was Spain, I saw my first live Flamenco performance and the fire of the dance stole my heart .. my future was dancing.

In 2008 the adventure of a life time began .. I began studying belly dance with Leslie Rosen of Raqs Serpentine and my passion for dance grew deeper than ever imaginable. Studying with various local teachers and attending various workshops, my style of dance has become a fusion of American Caberet and Hip Hop with traces of ATS, Egyptian, Ballet, Salsa and Modern Dance.

Nina as Sasha Onyx
Photo Credit: Espresso Buzz

Shortly after starting belly dance, I very much wanted to combine dance with fire. Studying poi under Leslie Rosen of Pyrosutra and Miss Fire of Spinergy Arts, this fire fly began to burn brightly. Not long after learning to spin poi my interests in fire tools widened .. hula hooping, fire fans, rope dart, snake poi and fire eating all came into the mix. I joined Spinergy Arts as Sasha Onyx in 2010 and performed local events and shows, I left the troupe late last year to pursue other forms of dance.

Wind Worshipping with DOTA
Photo Credit: Tim Elverston

We are starting a series of personal portraits about our collaborators / volunteers / performers. If you want to be featured, please send us text and image to info (at) trojanhorse2011 (dot) com. We’d like to hear about your first Burning Man experience, your connection to the Trojan Horse, and how you’re preparing for this year’s festival.