It is with great sadness that Ausdance VIC (AV) learned of the death of Kim Dunphy OAM. We were fortunate to have worked in close proximity with her as the President of Ausdance VIC from 1994-7.
A champion of dance, Kim was a dance practitioner who had an enormous influence on the sector. She was kind and open hearted, dedicated, talented, intelligent and driven. Kim was a dance movement therapist and a committee member of the Dance Movement Therapy Association of Australia from 2001, holding the roles of Vice President (2007-14) and President (2015-19). As a researcher, Kim developed innovative tools for evidence-based assessment for dance movement therapy through the prestigious MacKenzie Postdoctoral Fellowship ( Melbourne University 2016-19).
As an academic, she advanced Dance Movement Therapy training, first as an accredited vocational course in 2014, and then as Melbourne’s first Master’s Degree with Melbourne University (2020-). Kim influenced the community cultural development landscape in Australia and promoted the importance of grass-roots, local ideas, spaces and values being central to the development of community arts. Her skill and knowledge in working with diverse people in ways that are inclusive and accessible, drawing out what is individually important and collectively important to them was shared more widely in her writings and publications. For a full citation of these, please refer to DTAA Journal, Moving On, Volume 17, 1 & 2, 2020*.
Kim has left a great hole where her radiant being once flowed and connected with others. She will be sorely missed. *Ausdance VIC acknowledges this publication for the details and dates presented in this article.
