From a child, the art of body movement always intrigued MoNika. Training in Wushu at age 6, ballet at age 13, he always inspired for more. In his youth, his ballet teacher introduced him to a local circus company Pendulum Aerial Arts, where he trained over the next 12 years. MoNika joined Pendulum Aerial Arts at age 14 and went to be with the company until the age of 25. Throughout his time with Pendulum, he grew with the company. The timeline follows starting off in the after school kids program, the recreation classes, the youth program, the Pre-professional apprentice 4 year program, Principle company member, head coach, director of education and assistance artistic director.
As the years passed, he began taking opportunities to travel abroad, which led him to Hong Kong. There, he was introduced to pole dance, and in just a few years, hard work he placed 2nd in the world and 1st in the nation in 2014.
The summer of 2015, he left his home in Oregon and traveled south to California and Arizona and Las Vegas. While maintaining his training, he immersed himself with fitness such as: yoga, Pilates, conditioning, technique, and overall health. Through diverse instructing, certification, philosophy, and continuous research, he wants his student’s body movements to be a reflection of a healthy core.
At the end of 2021, MoNika moved to San Diego, CA and is happy to call this city his new home for him and his family.
