Karwan Omar
Landis & Gyr Stiftung Residency
2026
Karwan Omar (born 1970) is an independent dancer, choreographer, director, and dance educator. Originally from the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, he obtained both a diploma and a Bachelor’s degree in Dance and Theatre. During this time, he created numerous solo, duet, and group works that were performed nationally and internationally.
He later moved to Switzerland and has been living and working in Zug for the past 27 years. He completed a Master of Advanced Studies (MAS) in Dance Education at the Zurich University of the Arts, specialising in Contemporary Dance. Since 2012, he has been directing his own dance company in Zug.
For the past 16 years, he has taught dance to students of all ages — from children to adults aged 60 and over — through a wide range of classes and workshops. He also regularly works as a choreographer and director with the Children’s and Youth Theatre Zug. At the core of his teaching practice is the encouragement of creativity and the development of each individual’s unique movement language.
His work as a dance educator and choreographer spans projects with both professional dancers and non-professionals, ranging from small-scale workshops to large-scale productions. Building on this extensive experience, his most recent project is the newly completed dance film In the Heart of the Sun, in which he combines his passion for movement, rhythm, and visual poetry with the narrative possibilities of cinema.
Landis & Gyr Stiftung, Switzerland
The Landis & Gyr foundation awards studio scholarships to Swiss artists and cultural professionals in London, Budapest, Sofia and Zug. Its London-based residency partnership with Acme was established in 1987, and provides six month long work/live opportunities for ten Swiss artists per year. Artists are selected for the programme directly by Landis & Gyr Stiftung and must demonstrate a track record of achievement in their field. Over two hundred visual artists, curators, writers, musicians and composers have benefitted from the programme. Residencies are based in Stepney, E1 and are available to Swiss residents only
For more information visit lg-stiftung.ch.
