• Bachelor’s in Child and Adolescent Development: Youth Work & Out of School Time
• Master’s in Psychology
• Certified Youth Coach
• 25+ years of youth work experience from San Francisco to East Africa
• Featured photographer, documentarian, curator and oral historian (KQED, SF Public Libraries, African American Art & Culture Complex, SF State University, Stanford, SF MOMA, SF Black Film Festival, and more!)
Jarrel Phillips, also known as Coach Jarrel and Contra-mestre Chumbinho (in the capoeira world), is a San Francisco–based multidisciplinary artist, educator, and cultural practitioner whose work bridges movement, storytelling, and visual documentation. With over 24 years of experience working with youth across the Bay Area, his practice integrates capoeira, gymnastics, circus acrobatics, and dance with a broader commitment to cultural preservation, identity, and community empowerment.
Phillips holds a bachelor’s degree in Child and Adolescent Development and a master’s degree in psychology, grounding his work in both developmental theory and embodied practice. His artistic and movement training has been shaped by world-renowned mentors including Dominik Wyss of the Circus Center, Joanna Haigood of Zaccho Dance Theatre, Dharam Khalsa of AcroSports, and Mestre Urubu Malandro, founder of Capoeira Ijexá.
His work as a performer, artist, educator, and curator spans major cultural platforms and institutions, including San Francisco Carnaval, The Edwardian Ball, Night of Ideas, San Francisco Trolley Dances, Ruth Asawa School of the Arts, African American Art and Culture Complex, Bayview Opera House, Stanford University, San Francisco State University, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, KQED, San Francisco Black Film Festival, SFJAZZ, and library systems throughout Northern California.
In addition to his movement work, Phillips is a photographer, curator and documentarian whose practice centers on storytelling, cultural memory, and representation. Through his broader platform, Living Lore, he explores the intersections of oral history, visual narrative, and community-based archiving, working to uplift stories across generations and communities.
Phillips currently teaches throughout San Francisco, collaborating with institutions such as the San Francisco Public Library, Ruth Asawa School of the Arts, and Circus Center. His past roles include serving as Head Coach of the AcroSports Pre-K Program and Lead Acrobatics Instructor with Prescott Circus Theatre and Zaccho Dance Theatre.
Across all disciplines, his work is rooted in a singular mission: to foster personal and collective transformation through movement, story, identity, and cultural expression.
www.shipyardartists.com/artist/jarrel-phillips/
