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In Loving
Memory
Arte Phillips
The ultimate artist
a mentor & a friend
Passed away
Nov 12, 2008 |
I can't
actually remember the first time I met Arte. My
time knowing him seems like something of an
unforgettable blink.
I think
I first met Arte in late 2000/ early 2001. I
probably met him while my first partner, Tami Harris and
I were attending Hustle USA to compete in one of the
West Coast Swing division.
By
September 2001, Tami and I had a routine choreographed
by Arte and we won the National Championships at Hustle
USA our first time out.
 The
video of that routine (Arte's Choreography) can be found
Here. It was my first Hustle routine being
performed at the US Open.
 The
following year, Arte choreographed my next routine with
Laura Cozik. We wanted to do something avant garde
- so we brought a "swing" song to Arte. Yes,
a swing song for a Hustle routine.
Arte choreographed a brilliant routine to Frank
Sinatra's "World On A String". We won Hustle USA
again.
There
isn't enough I can possibly say about Arte. I
danced with him, learned from him and considered him my
friend. There is a saying: "Give a man a fish and
you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed
him for a lifetime". Arte fed me artistically
every time I saw him - he inspired me with every
movement. He continues to feed me for a lifetime
with how he changed how I see dance, partnership and
teaching.
I miss
Arte every day. There isn't a day that I dance
Hustle that I haven't thought about him. I'll miss
his hat, his sunglasses, his glass of white wine and the
movement that changed lives on and off the floor.
This is the only picture
of Arte & me together.
I have photographed him for 7 years but I've always been
on the opposite side of the lens.
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