No Mi Che
No Mi Che started rolling, swinging and spending more time upside down than upright when she joined ‘Flipside Circus’ at the age of 14.
Completing a ‘Bachelor of Circus Arts’ in 2006 at the National Institute of Circus Arts in Melbourne, No Mi specialized in Cloud Swing and Hula Hoops with paint. Her passion for installation and performance art sent her speckling her colours from Australia to London, Wales, Edinburgh, France and India.
During her year in India, No Mi’s art took a compassionate twist as she saw the significance of art as therapy. She went on to collaborate with ‘Cultural Canvas Thailand’, where she facilitated workshops for diverse clients and curated exhibits in Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, the South Pacific Islands, and Bali. In 2011, she completed a ‘Post Graduate Diploma in Experimental and Creative Arts Practice’ at the Melbourne Institute of Experimental and Creative Arts Therapy.
In 2012, No Mi and Dawa founded ‘Wobbly Spoon’ and embarked on a one-year Cultural Arts Exchange program in Georgia. Wanting to bring depth to their work and explore the physical body in a more holistic way, they moved to China in 2013 where they lived for five years studying Qigong, Daoyin, meditation & nutritional healing. During this time they completed a two year intensive Qigong Instructor accreditation with ‘Wandering Dao Medical Qigong School’, based in Yangshuo.
They continued fusing forms, creating spontaneous performance art, running workshops and collaborating with NGOs including Circus Kathmandu, REWA, RADHA and CERES.
In 2020, they returned to Australia and No Mi has been creating and facilitating Art Therapy programs with ‘Function Lifestyle’ to clients with complex disabilities. By engaging her clients in a multi-modal arts practice, they are able to develop their motor skills, self expression and regulate emotional well-being. No Mi additionally completed a Certificate IV in Disability at the Institute of Health and Nursing Australia, and a Level III in Auslan (Australian Sign Language) at VicDeaf, extending the inclusiveness of her services.
When No Mi isn’t creating and facilitating Art Therapy programs she is leading ‘Circus Jam’ with Dawa, supported by ‘Arapiles Community Theatre’, and rock-climbing at her beloved home crag, Djurrite (Mount Araplies). She is also a qualified TRG rock-climbing guide through the Australian Climbing Instructors Association.
Dawa Raphael Che
At the age of 14, Dawa began his love affair with rock climbing. Preferring the cliffs of Djurite (Mount Arapiles) and Gariwerd (The Grampians) to the school classroom, he joyfully strayed from algebra and aptitude tests into the world of ropes, physical movement and nature.
Leaving the backyard cliffs of Australia at the age of 19 he climbed further afield in Thailand, Spain, England and France. What was originally intended to be a four-month trip became two years of work, language study, camping and beautiful encounters. One such encounter with a fellow traveller, Akiyoshi Takefuji, introduced him to the art of juggling.
Upon his return to Australia he enrolled at the National Institute of Circus Arts and graduated with a Bachelor of Circus Arts in 2007. Soon after he returned to France to explore circus more deeply as a physical theatre medium at ‘Le Centre Municipal De Cirque - Le Lido’, Toulouse, completing a two year ‘Formation Professionnelle’. Over the course of four years he worked in France, Italy, Spain, Germany, Switzerland, Qatar and Israel.
In 2012, Dawa and No Mi founded ‘Wobbly Spoon’ and embarked on a Cultural Arts Exchange program in Georgia. Wanting to bring depth to their work and explore the physical body in a more holistic way, they moved to China in 2013 where they lived for five years studying Qigong, Daoyin, meditation & nutritional healing. During this time they completed a two year intensive Qigong Instructor accreditation with ‘Wandering Dao Medical Qigong School’, based in Yangshuo.
They continued fusing forms, creating spontaneous performance art, running workshops and collaborating with NGOs including Circus Kathmandu, REWA, RADHA and CERES.
In 2020, they returned to Australia and Dawa completed a ‘Diploma of Remedial Massage’ and opened his own clinic. When he is not massaging he is leading ‘Circus Jam’ with No Mi, supported by ‘Arapiles Community Theatre’, and rock-climbing at his home crag, Djurrite (Mount Arapiles). He is also a qualified SPG rock-climbing guide through the Australian Climbing Instructors Association.