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altomath42 · 3 years

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High 11 Vacationer Points Of Interest In Azerbaijan

According to 2012, about 285 thousand individuals stay within the metropolis, many of which work in the industrial sector. Gradually, the chemical industry was not the main business of the town; In Sumgait, at present there are massive machine builders, meals processing companies, in addition to the main centers that produce the constructing supplies. During your trip, you should definitely combine your favorite entertainments with visiting outlets and markets of Azerbaijan. Here, you can buy luxurious silk of the local manufacturing, beautiful ceramic objects and local craftsmen’s masterpieces. One of the largest craft markets of the country is positioned in the historic district of Baku. In the suburban district of the capital, there is the Carpet Center. Working alongside the native operators from around the world, we curate travel content material, products and services, ensuring our clients are properly knowledgeable and simply ready to decide on the proper experience for them. We deliver solely one of the best to our prospects, with all TES Tour products handpicked by our skilled travel staff. All nights in carefully-selected, high quality assured campsites and hotels including distinctive, independently-owned boutiques. Traditional Azerbaijani tea is served with nationwide sweets and jam. The tea table is embellished with a plate of colourful jams, nuts, honey, and pastry. Park Visagov provides you with a straightforward and easy system to obtain it thanks to our simplified utility kind for Azerbaijan e-Visa that takes you solely about 5 minuts to finish. The e-Visa allows you to visit Azerbaijan for up to 30 days utilizing solely on-line application as an alternative of visiting the embassy. Many of the world’s largest and most recognizable lodge chains have a presence in Baku. This is good information for guests who fancy the familiar in relation to trip accommodations. This is in part due to the curiosity known as Yanar Dag, or Fire Mountain. At the bottom of this quite modest hill, natural gas flames burn constantly. It's a landmark garden-park in the heart of old Baku with an artwork fountain and cafe, about 2 blocks from the Caspian Sea, masking a 2 acre city block. Azerbaijan can be identified for its mud volcanoes – nearly 400 of them concentrated in a comparatively small region outdoors the capital and near the Caspian Sea. These pure wonders are brought on by tectonic movement that enables subterranean gases to leak to the surface. The metropolis heart features examples of Soviet classicist buildings, just like the City Hall , alongside historic mosques and hammams, as nicely as 19th century red-brick structures. The Gizilaghaj Nature Reserve, situated in the Lankaran District alongside the southeast Caspian coast, is the most important protected area in the entire nation. Encompassing greater than 300 sq. miles, it's house to some 270 species of birds, together with swans, pelicans, geese, herons, ibises, spoonbills, geese, and flamingos. Ateshgah Fire Temple Close To Baku Azerbaijan Inventory Photograph Because of this, the earth was losing resources; the lights of the temple started to weaken progressively. We decided that this could be a curse of heaven and progressively left Atashgah. In 1880, the final Hindu, who lived in Ateshgah, went to India, and in 1902 the previous fire went out. 1850 – the start line of the model new historical past of the village, when Surakhan touched the oil boom and oilmen from all round the Empire started to collect here. Over time, earthquakes have altered the format of the three,000 caves and corridors that existed in Tamara’s time. Frescoes in the caves that remain represent the top of the Golden Age of Georgian portray; amongst them are portraits of King Giorgi and Queen Tamara. In the villages, homes are backed up against each other with one household's roof serving as another's terrace, and so on up the hill. This part of Georgia historically suffered from international invasions, and the structure allowed defenders to retreat via the maze of interconnected houses if necessary. Enjoy dinner this evening with conventional Azeri musical leisure. 居家 -known kind is mugham, a fusion of Persian and Turkic traditions honored as a World Cultural Masterpiece by UNESCO. Government-linked Azerbaijani scholars formally argue that Armenians didn't even seem within the territory of recent Azerbaijan until the 19th century, regardless of the presence of 1000's of sacred Christian and pagan Armenian sites. Azerbaijani politicians have relabeled the latter, which encompass largely churches and cross-stones, as “Caucasian Albanian,” in reference to a now extinct nation that's identified predominantly by way of Armenian historical past texts. In 1925, a Zoroastrian priest and academic Jivanji Jamshedji Modi traveled to Baku to determine if the temple had indeed been as quickly as a Zoroastrian place of worship. Toronto, Ontario BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir Toronto This Hindu temple is an architectural marvel designed and constructed in accordance with ancient Indian ideas. German traveler Lerch who visited the temple in 1733, wrote that here there are 12 Guebres or ancient Persian fireplace worshipers». Samuel Gottlieb Gmelin's Reise durch Russland is cited in Karl Eduard von Eichwald's Reise in den Caucasus the place the naturalist Gmelin is claimed to have noticed Yogi austerities being carried out by devotees. Geologist Eichwald restricts himself to a point out of the worship of Rama, Krishna, Hanuman and Agni. Japanese Public Bathhouses Deny Entry To Tourists With Tattoos Experience the most effective Chinese tea house tradition in Chengdu if you go to the Old Tea House in Pengzhen. Our adopted dog, Ginger, came to see us off on the bus cease after we left for KaşPamukkale is one of the primary tourist sights in Turkey and is nicely connected to different cities within the nation. The nearest airport is Denizli Çardak within the city of Denizli, which is about 20 km away. Ali, the proprietor, always provided us a Turkish espresso or tea on the home after our meals. Like virtually anyplace else in Turkey you’ll find a cat patiently ready for scraps whenever you look beneath your desk. You really ought to go and expertise the food and atmosphere at the White House. Vestiges of Roman bathing types could be seen within the manifestation of the three-room structure, which was widespread through the Roman/Byzantine period. Room at the Baños del Almirante, a historic Andalusi bathhouse in Valencia, Spain (c. Hammam complexes typically contain separate quarters for women and men; or men and women are admitted at separate occasions. On many occasions they became locations of leisure (such as dancing and food, especially in the girls's quarters) and ceremonies, similar to before weddings, high-holidays, celebrating newborns, magnificence trips. Historic underground bathhouse complex, dating from the 17th century, in the Icheri Sheher old city of Baku.Baku, Azerbaijan – July 4, 2020. Historic underground bathhouse complex, dating from the seventeenth century, within the Icheri Sheher old town of Baku. Next, head via the door to the washing space and straight to the showers. Take a seat on one of many tiny stools and wash your whole physique. Most places have shampoo and body wash available, in any other case be at liberty to soak up your own. Be sure to rinse off all of the cleaning soap and shampoo – you shouldn’t get any in the baths. However, as time goes by, the spring turns into weaker and weaker. There is a one-hour kora route in Tirthapuri which is fascinating to follow. Although far fewer in quantity than in earlier centuries, many Turkish hammams are nonetheless operating today and proceed to be relevant to each locals and vacationers. Some have been lately restored or modernized with various levels of historic authenticity. Other hammam buildings have ceased functioning as public baths but have been carefully repurposed as markets or cultural venues, as for instance the Tahtakale Hamam in Istanbul and the Orhan Bey Hamam in Bursa. In some instances hammam buildings have been repurposed as storage depots or factories, though this has often led to neglect and damage to their historic cloth. Azerbaijan Art Work to collect exhibits and gadgets began in 1967, and in 1972 the first visitors might see the rare displays collected within the museum. It is a posh the place, along with the palace itself, can be found a courtyard of the Diwankhana, the courthouse, the Shirvanshahs’ burial vault, the palace mosque of 1441 with its minaret, the bathhouse and the mausoleum of the court scholar, Sayid Yahya Bakuvi. Its origins date again to the 1830s when it began as a small area of fruit timber which steadily expanded with ever more exotic plants and trees until by the top of the century it had developed into a fully fledged city park. Today it is nonetheless one of the nice spots within the city to go for a stroll. Baku is the capital and largest metropolis of Azerbaijan, in addition to the most important city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. Baku is situated 28 metres under sea degree, which makes it the bottom lying nationwide capital on the earth and in addition the biggest metropolis on the earth located below sea level. It's transformed to museum and the old utensils, jewelry and other art is on show. Education The A. Azimzade State College of Fine Arts, Baku and the State University of Arts, Baku. Exhibitions Involved in a quantity of international art exhibitions and symposiums. Collections In high demand by private collectors in Europe and UAE, where his art is having fun with growing recognition; Active since 1987. 6 Awesome Outdoor Activities In Baku The tallest of the three is a 39-story residential luxury house building. I would undoubtedly advocate you to go there at sunrise or sundown as you’ll have a unbelievable view of the harbor and the Caspian Sea. It’s a fairly comfortable climb up the steps however you can even get there by taking the funicular. Baku actually is a metropolis the place old meets new – historical fortified buildings standing subsequent to Russian imperial-style squares and ultra-modern architectural wonders. Your adventure begins with a welcome meeting at 6 pm within the night, where you will meet your native leader and fellow travellers joining you for this adventure. Relax and revel in a restful evening, with your welcome dinner scheduled for tomorrow night to permit all travellers to attend. Your next destination will be the place, which is important for nature lovers – Nohur Lake. Around this fascinating nature, the lake reflects the Greater Caucasus Mountains in its green-blue waters. After having full day's impressions on the end of the day, you'll return to Baku. Popular pure attractions close by embrace the Nohur Lake and the Seven Beuaties waterfall. With doors to workshops open to the road and old stone homes, the over 1,000-year-old Lahic is sort of a residing open-air museum. My favorite thing in the space was visiting Kish, a little hamlet just north of Sheki and easily reachable by a 20-minute bus experience. It’s residence to the Kish Albanian Church , the oldest Christian church in Azerbaijan , and surrounded by many a mystery. Now the charming church is an interesting site to go to and has a small tri-lingual museum. Perhaps essentially the most unique tourist web site in the metropolis is the Bottle House – a home that’s construct out of forty eight,000 glass bottles. The heartbreakingly lovely backstory to this unique constructing is that it serves as a memorial to its creators brother wh went lacking in the course of the Second World War. Getting Enjoyable In Azerbaijan Famous Festivals, Celebrations And Cultural Events On June sixteen in the complicated My Beach Novkhani throughout the framework of the We Color Festival there will be a colourful leisure program, contests, an evening disco and a salute. You are waiting for 2 unforgettable summer season days on the island of KHAZAR ISLANDS. Tons of colorful powder, 1000's of joyful faces, leisure for each taste. Old friends and new acquaintances, brilliant feelings and pleasant memories, favourite music and sizzling dances is not going to let you down this summer season in Baku. Any other use of these supplies without prior written authorization isn't very good and violates the copyright. This article about national fests and celebrations of Azerbaijan is protected by the copyright law. You can re-use the content, but only beneath the situation of placement of an active link to By utilizing the mobile software of the Festival it will be possible to find out details about the events taking place within its framework. Information on events at Nasimi Festival in Azerbaijan available via mobile software. Shusha metropolis was occupied by Armenian Armed Forces in 1992 and liberated from Armenian occupation in the Second Karabakh warfare. International advocacy groups often rate Azerbaijan as essentially the most inhospitable place in Europe for queer people, and the scenario has been exacerbated by the COVID-19 lockdown. Generally there shall be massive dinners with conventional meals corresponding to Plov, however essentially the most notable tradition for Nowruz in Azerbaijan is the pastries. The Czech program of the competition was put together by Miroslava Janičatová, who is also included in the International Festival Jury. Meanwhile, greater than 20 live shows are scheduled to happen in multiple venues across the capital metropolis, with most of them held within the Rotunda Jazz Club. She has been taught by many well-known musicians and teachers corresponding to Faig Zohrabov. Aygun is now a beloved Azerbaijani singer in Toronto, the place she has had quite a few performances. Arta is a grade 10 high school scholar and the youngest member of TAMDE’s music group. He has been playing the piano since 2009 and the saxophone since 2013. Arta has also been a member of Aurora High School’s symphonic band as a saxophone player for 2 years. Azerbaijan Frustrated at not having the power to discover any items that truly reflected Azerbaijani tradition and traditions, we decided to make our own. We use solely the highest high quality supplies and our artists are commissioned by us to create their own distinctive interpretation of Azerbaijani motifs. We need both our customers and suppliers to be satisfied. Each set has it’s personal story to share; and each story will assist you to study Azerbaijani individuals, their habits, folklore and traditions. Our ardour is to produce stunning gadgets which you will proceed to enjoy for months and years. This article about buying in Azerbaijan is protected by the copyright regulation. An exclusive assortment of world-famous stores within the heart of downtown Charleston. From Godiva to Gucci, the ultimate purchasing experience & the finest selections within the city. A visit to this speciality shop is a must should you want to buy the very greatest quality edible stuff from Azerbaijan. AIRBORNE MIKEFORCE VIETNAM Military Veteran US ARMY Hat Pin P14723 EE. Barack Obama Autographed Repro PHOTO First Pitch Washington Nationals Signed Pic. Halloween Inflatable Blow in Pumpkin Up Outdoor Yard Halloween LED Lights Decor. ALIEN at the cafe coffee store artwork tile coaster gift presents. Classic Matte Black Bullet Pen with Clip Fisher Space Pen # 400BCL. Local Eating Places & Price Range Cafes In Downtown Baku But it turned out to be quite onerous to search out locations that have been open on weekend mornings. We did discover a few and managed to benefit from the conventional Azeri breakfast very much. Some of the most typical Azeri dishes like kebab or tea can be discovered elsewhere however in Azerbaijan they appeared to style better. Do not leave the nation without attempting some of the following dishes and then some extra fascinating and fascinating information about Azerbaijan for somewhat aspect of tradition with your meal. Expect to enjoy it with saffron and cinnamon plus a lot of dried fruits like apricot or even dates and chestnuts. Rice will usually be served with meat, mostly mutton or lamb that are the favorite combinations. However, the inside of this Azerbaijani restaurant is homey. Built out of heavy wood beams, the broad room is set with sturdy picnic tables designed for crowds. Try the smoked eggplant salad chock full of peppers.Servers are matter-of-fact, especially in the event that they assume you’ve ordered too much food. Azerbaijani pilaf ($13.50, below) was extremely beneficial to us by the server, and was quite totally different from another versions from Central Asia. Instead of a mixture, the non-rice components are plated next to the rice, and embrace a hearty helping of dried plums, cherries, and apricots with the tender lamb. Cis & Cee Capital Markets Conference 2018 Taking under consideration the worldwide expertise, a draft Law on Electricity has been ready. The government plans to permit Independent mills to enter the sector and purchase present power vegetation or construct new ones. The potential privatisation of strategic assets could not adversely have an result on power sustainability and safety. In the meantime, both countries have accused one another of shelling civilian targets. Azerbaijan claims that Armenian forces in Nagorno-Karabakh have been shelling Ganja to disrupt the flow of oil and gasoline. From 2007 to 2020, the common annual progress price of worth to Russia amounted to -X%. Being a detailed partner of Bilesim International Research & Consultancy, ERA continually complied with the codes and guidelines of ESOMAR â The World Association of Research Professionals. In additiond to this, ERA Marketing Center obtained license for manufacturing and sales of TGI project in Azerbaijan. TGI is a fast-growing, global community of single-source market research surveys performed in 60 nations of the world across 6 continents since Sixties. News, consulting firms, tasks, analysis and developments within the consultancy industry of Azerbaijan. By late 2010, FIRST consultants prepared and introduced a complete capital market assessment report and Capital Market Development Strategic Plan. Sunday the twenty seventh of September 2020, fighting flared up again within the South Caucasus between Armenia and Azerbaijan. The most recent war has displaced tens of 1000's of citizens in primarily Nagorno-Karabakh and tons of of troopers have misplaced their lives. While the human prices are super, Europe’s energy safety is also in danger. Azerbaijan Family Travel Whether you’re in search of mountains or sea, cities or countryside, you’ll discover plenty to explore in Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan was such an amazing, fantastic, stunning, and pleasant place. In tiny villages, older men with canes sat in town squares gazing at passersby. To get to Alinja Castle, I advocate you ask your lodging to rent a taxi driver for a half-day journey to Alinja Castle in addition to Ashab-I Kehf Cave, our subsequent destination. It ought to value no greater than 60 AZN for a roundtrip ride to Alinja Castle in addition to Ashab-I Kehf Cave. Sheki CityFound to the west of Baku, that is famed as one of the oldest human settlements in all the Caucasus and is said so far again 2500 years. Sheki City was a stop off on the Silk Road and was well-known for beautiful silks and different textiles. Azerbaijan, within the Caucuses area, is a rustic that straddles each Eastern Europe and Western Asia, so anticipate a conflict of east meets west and you can see a lot to enjoy right here. Located on the Caspian Sea, there are quaint subtropical seaside resorts, or you presumably can embrace Azerbaijan’s name because the Land of Fire with a visit to a flaming mountain or a mud volcano. Part of the Silk Road magical trail that took traders to its booming capital Baku on the Caspian Sea, Azerbaijan keeps you in your toes. Despite seeing themselves as Muslims, Azeri males typically drink alcoholic drinks, and this is broadly accepted, most likely due to the Russian and Soviet legacy . Unrest in Iran, Iraq and Syria in the 21st century has made the government very strict about non secular clothing and symbols and prompted higher secularization and stricter management of the southern borders. Any spiritual signs, flags, slogans in public and proselytizing for any faith are prohibited by regulation. Any violation will lead to fines, imprisonment, and in case of foreigners, deportation from the country. Don't assume that anyone you have no idea believes in God or has a passion for Islam or in other faiths. Investigations into folks's religion is largely unwelcome, and outdoors places of worship, displays of your religion ought to be kept personal. Hotels might provide this service for their visitors, however travellers are strongly advised to ensure the registration has been accomplished indeed as resorts are more than typically skip doing it. A visa just isn't required for stays of ninety days or less for citizens of Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan. — A beautiful metropolis within the forested Caucasus Mountains with heaps to see and do. It has one of many largest densities of cultural assets and monuments that span 2,seven-hundred years of Azerbaijani historical past. — Azerbaijan's second largest city has an extended history, some necessary sites and an attention-grabbing and manifold structure. Just just like the culture represents a singular mixture of traditions of neighboring international locations, national delicacies can additionally be an interesting mix of dishes. You will discover acquainted tastes in Azerbaijani cuisine with exotic names. 11 Things You Should Know About Azerbaijani Tradition But with a new and easy three-day visa service, reasonable costs and unbeatable hospitality, travelers that make it to the "Land of Fire" are often very pleasantly surprised. Straddling East and West, it blends dramatic landscapes with a folks and culture that replicate its fascinating location on the crossroads of Turkey, Russia and Iran. Most suppose it's possible to be a devout Muslim and still live in a contemporary society, and many additionally dismiss the concept that there may be an inherent antagonism between faith and science. While Huseynov was in limbo, Aliyev took his place as the chairman of the IRFS. He kept the operation going during its most difficult moments, shuttling between Azerbaijan and neighboring Georgia, where the outfit established new financial institution accounts. Finally, in June 2015, Huseynov escaped his residence nation, flying out with a Swiss authorities delegation that had attended the opening ceremony of the European Games. In divided Cyprus, a joint cultural-heritage fee of Greek and Turkish Cypriots was created in 2012 to take care of endangered monuments on either side of the island. Development Program, the fee has been embraced by each communities for restoring church buildings as well as mosques and hamams, and ancient aqueducts and fortifications. Following recent arson attacks on mosques in Greek Cypriot territory, the Greek Orthodox neighborhood was quick to sentence the assailants. But in all of these cases, the United Nations, the United States and its European allies have remained largely mute. UNESCO, which is dependent upon lots of the offending governments for funding and support, has shown little interest in intervening. Azerbaijan Nightlife Baku Railway Station is the terminus for nationwide and worldwide rail links to the town. The Kars–Tbilisi–Baku railway, which directly connects Turkey, Georgia and Azerbaijan, started to be constructed in 2007 and opened in 2017. Given that they are located in an iconic Baku landmark, it’s no surprise that Fairmont Baku takes our top spot for luxury motels in the metropolis. They have great on-site amenities, together with a restaurant, massive spa space and even a nightclub! If you really wish to splash the money, look on further than Fairmont Baku. Our Clubs and Bars in Azerbaijan for guests from Vietnam contains suggestions on where to search out the most effective bars and clubs within the Azerbaijanis capital. Known for its high-end themed events Enerji Club offers a tasty menu, and spontaneous and unique exhibits. The ambiance here is vibrant with unbelievable DJ music only including to the atmosphere. The outdoors terrace through the summer season season is the perfect place to have a sundowner after work or chill with friends at the weekend.

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khixsoncounselorpdx · 3 years

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Alienation of the Mental Health Worker in the time of COVID

8/25/21

“The worker [d]oes not feel content but unhappy, does not develop freely his physical and mental energy but mortifies his body and ruins his mind. The worker therefore only feels himself outside his work, and in his work feels outside himself;" -Economic and Philosophical Manuscripts of 1844. Estranged Labour Karl Marx

As I reflect on 17 months of a global pandemic, it’s clear how alienated I feel from my own labor as a psychotherapist. Deeply disconnected from its prior form. Flattened. Two-dimensionalized. Confused. Distracted. Marx talked about alienated labor as a product of disconnection between the worker and their labor. A sort of objectification of labor—when we no longer have choice about how our labor is sold and no choice about what it makes. (Certainly, Marx would balk at my bourgeois self-employment and private property situation, but, hey, I’m using 170-year-old theory to make a point, here). “...the fact that labor is external to the worker, i.e., it does not belong to his intrinsic nature; that in his work, therefore, he does not affirm himself but denies himself, does not feel content but unhappy, does not develop freely his physical and mental energy but mortifies his body and ruins his mind.” Yes, this….this new technology that has been introduced has externalized and strained my emotional labor. My mind and body tells the truth about this.

I remember the shock and confusion of March 2020. Realizing my counseling practice would need to go online. On one hand, it seemed utterly dreadful and on the other, I felt grateful—I could still work. I could still support my clients. I rallied. I pivoted. So did my clients. Unfortunately/fortunately, my clients and I were both going through the exact same experience. While it not uncommon for therapists and clients to have similar problems, we are not usually facing them in such a deeply parallel way.

pandemic office 3/18/2020

Restlessness quickly settled in. I couldn’t find a spot in my office that I was comfortable sitting at for more than a couple sessions. I moved all around. Sitting on the couch with the computer on the coffee table, previously populated by client beverages and belongings. Then with the computer on my lap. Feet up. Feet down. Over in the chair in the other corner of the office. Piles started to form. So many beverage containers. Fruit peels scattered about. It was hard to make sense of the space without clients coming in and out of it. It no longer mattered how messy it became. Then I brought a table up and placed it in the middle of my office, paired with one of my chairs. One day, my lower back completely seized up upon getting up from the chair. Eventually, I decided to move my office. Maybe it would help to be more grounded on the first floor? I was losing it in this out of the way treehouse sort of space on the second floor. Maybe more windows would help?

pandemic office 8/29/20

I opened up a counseling and event space only 6 months prior to the start of the pandemic. An effort to control my own business from the many shitty commercial landlords I have experienced since being self employed in 2006 in Portland, Oregon. A space specially created to build community among radical, queer, non-binary, and trans counselors and social workers—my friends & community of practitioners. In the initial weeks of lockdown during the pandemic, the 8 offices and the 735 sq ft of training space were completely empty and I would walk the halls in silence. Wondering when people would return to continue building what we’d started.

When my friends and colleagues started trickling back in the late spring/summer of 2020, pushed out of their homes due to the desire for normalcy and work-home life separation, we said fuck it and put a pool in the parking lot. No clients were coming to the building, no use for a parking lot.

summer 2020 pandemic parking lot pool 7/26/2020

Then there was an uprising, an election, fake news about the election, and a Jan 6 assault on the Capitol. Sprinkled in there were 10 days of post-apocalyptic wildfire smoke hell in Sept 2020 in the Pacific Northwest. My mom got COVID, she survived. A snow and ice storm in February 2021 that resulted in power outages and downed trees. A summer 2021 heatwave. More fires. More gnarly air quality stats.

Realizing the impacts of doing relational work on a computer has been hard to understand—akin to a program running in the background throughout the pandemic. Not always noticeable, but ever present. We were all talking about how tired we were at first. It was hard to make sense of how different this was from pre-pandemic embodied counseling. Approximately ¼ of my body is present on the screen. Approximately ¼ of my client’s body is present on the screen. I move my face more emphatically and wave my arms more actively to translate emotion through this two dimensional space. Two or more nervous systems, disembodied and fighting to connect through the fluctuating megabits per second. The relational zest of being in the room together, mostly missing. We fight, together, to translate the care to this new medium.* We succeed at times. We keep going. We realize this is certainly better than giving up, giving in to a deeper isolation, a deeper alienation from one another. We find that it matters to acknowledge what we are all going through, together.

the view from my second floor office 7/1/20/20

I was able to reflect on the pandemic more deeply on a recent trip to the California high desert. Looking at the desolate landscape brought things to the surface more crisply. I realized it was the small stuff—walking to and greeting a client in the waiting room, smiling in the same space, getting water or therapy tea, and carrying it into the shared space. Small talk while inhabiting the same room. Settling into our chairs and couches. Shifting our bodies for maximum comfort. Doing the work with two 3-dimensional bodies and nervous systems. Watching the ticking clock in the room. Walking my client out.

“The worker can create nothing without nature, without the sensuous external world. It is the material on which his labor is realized, in which it is active, from which, and by means of which it produces.” -Economic and Philosophical Manuscripts of 1844. Estranged Labour Karl Marx

fern recovering from heat wave 8/13/21

So now, 17 months into this mess with no sign of it ending, and perhaps a second challenging fall and winter ahead, I must pivot again. Except, in a different direction. Inward. And then, outward, with a more embodied effort at reconnection. Unalienating myself from the labor. Reaching into the computer with my authentic truth and speaking it aloud. “Client, I really miss seeing you in person.”

*I am in awe of what my clients and I have actually been able to accomplish in this medium. I deeply appreciate them and their ability to survive/thrive in this current world.

References

https://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1844/manuscripts/labour.htm

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genesiagoudal-u8report · 4 years

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🟣 WKM03: 1stDraft

⬛️ THEMATIC EXPOSITION

The theory of The alienation of the self ¹, developed by Karl Marx in 1932, describes one of the consequences to being one mechanistic part of the ensemble. Fifty years later, the Situationists International guaranteed that this global misery of social alienation has been spreading to every aspect of life and culture², due to the dictatorship of advanced capitalism.

On another level, social structures and over hierarchised forms of power have led the mass to master the art of social performance, a role-play cultivated through normalised education. This performance of embodying perfectly our own selves makes us strangers to our Gattungswesen, our species-essence¹. The role-player, the everyday man, loses his ability to determine destiny and life. He is deprived of the right to conceive and to direct his own actions¹.

Debord’s spectacle may well be the everlasting sun³ that never sets over the empire of modernity. It burns and consumes the personal experience of consciousness. This mechanisation of reality leads me to investigate human's relationship to the I and the It⁴. To the I and the else. Indeed, an ability to position oneself within its environment could be key to define and, therefore, re-design its scope of action within the possession of its consciousness.

environment | ɪnˈvʌɪrənm(ə)nt, ɛnˈvʌɪrənm(ə)nt |, noun 1 the surroundings or conditions in which a person, animal, or plant lives or operates.

The sensitive relationships our bodies have with their territories⁵ question politics of living together, both in terms of spatiality and sociability. Space, for example, models an objectified version of the world we live in. Its complex architecture, both physical, its buildings, streets, signs, and immaterial, its social structures, ways of navigating; geophilosophically, holds hierarchical systems. Ways to behave are preconceived. The perspective of an informed cognitive experience fades away as we acknowledge our impotence in the impact of the surroundings. It seems like we are not given the choice. We do forget that we have the choice .

Did we loose the skill of questioning our environment and acting for it? How could be arouse in people a remastered sensation of power over the design of one's life experience?

experience | ɪkˈspɪərɪəns, ɛkˈspɪərɪəns | noun 1 practical contact with and observation of facts or events 2 an event or occurrence which leaves an impression on someone

Critical discourses have socially been confined to distinct areas within the polis, from the museum to the university; where the simplest notion of accessibility is still questioned. Creative thinking struggles to pass the walls of standardised learning environments and to find application within society's re-design agenda.

Participative experiences can help the wider audience to effectively regain that creative instinct to question, experiment, play with, learn and to position oneself within the world. It's inviting them to become more than a mechanistic part, they have control over the final creation. They are now considered. In Deleuzian words, I call for co-creative ways to foster transformable and transformative situations ⁶.

Through the 20th century onwards, we have witnessed artistic, political and theoretical attempts to challenge and nurture collective creativity. The Situationists have experimented with methods such as psychogeography ⁷ to disrupt mapped conceptions of urban environments. Another call for a total dissolution of the boundaries between art and life. A call for applied creative thinking. Modern and avant-garde artists explored mediums such as installation, performance, in-situ pieces to engage people in reflective, critical exchanges. They sparked debates using effective information assemblages, providing the public with keys to generate an opinion on current matters.

Nevertheless, these attempts were still socially and spatially assigned to the domain of art. Accessibility still questions. Design has a role to play to reach wider audiences and to open the dialogue even more. Historically, designed products and ads played a predominant role in the growth of the spectacular capital age. It shaped our perception of things, pushing consumption forward. Although, other graphic designers, Barbara Kruger, Rick Poynor, David Carson, understood its power to transmit messages and to provoke deeper emotions than: "Oh my god, I really need that anti-wrinkle lotion!". User-based experiences and the internet also helped significantly.

More recently, The Rodina, a duo of dutch graphic designers, ask themselves: How can design foster freedom and playfulness for its users? How can we create objects and situations that promote activity and participation for social good? ⁸

Their practice of performative design ⁸, is one way to challenge the action of co-creating the surface and its content. Designers, then, become facilitators of rich experiential debates. The act and choice of being present and conscious of the shared reality is necesarry for both designer and audience. It finally feels like we are looked upon as potent and powerful vectors of future re-designed possibilities.

Carrying one, my personal intentions as designer, researcher and facilitator are to break down pre-established knowledge formations and to provide individuals with accessible choices into learning and understanding the power of applied creativity. In other words, their power of influence. Within the spectrum of ‘post-critical’ design, I experiment with collective ways to inspire and engage people in the re-modelling of the everyday.

To design such tools and platforms, I work on combining theoretical research work (sociology, phenomenology, geography, politics) and practical creative experiments (art, design, vernacular). Thinking through making is another component of my creative journey, feedbacks are essential to re-assess my design's capability to challenge particular environments and beliefs systems.

I believe that this socialist approach to design can play a role in the decrease of established power structures, which constrain the act of deciding one's experience of consciousness and, therefore, life. Contrary to the affirmative design approach, I intend to defy the context instead of aligning with it.¹⁰ I consider participation as a soft power tool that can help to free oneself from Marx's theory: the estrangement.

⬛️ CASE-STUDY EVIDENCE

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As explained above, I aspire to question systems of knowledge and access to critical judgement in the everyday life. This focus on reformative education has been central to this first project: on classroom.

“People learn to learn as they learn.” Hein, G. (1954) Constructivist Learning Theory

Through the learning of hand-weaving, I had wished to regain a self composure by avoiding the digital realm. The technique did not really impress me, at first. Indeed, "I have always been a manual person".

Surprisingly, I had been wrong. My learning curve turned out to be far more disastrous and uncomfortable than I expected. Pressure and anxiety lead me to realise: how could I ever be legitimate enough to teach weaving to others? Doubt is present, but must be overcomed in my quest to become facilitator. With this in mind, I started to experiment and user-test early drafts.

My first and second attempts focused on achieving a gratifying individual learning experience. I would design an accessible customisable step-by-step guide to weaving, with a focus on relaxation and mental wellbeing. But then, I started to question this guide's capacity to accomplish such ambitions. Again, "will anyone be able to complete weaves on my advices, and balance its natural emotional response to failure?" This desire for accessibility and optimal efficiency led me to reconsider the scope and agenda of the project. Looking back, I realised that the focus should be on the underlying issue: mental health awareness and mindfulness.

The target audience quickly drifted and became group-based. Indeed, a retrospective look at education seems essential to understand how and why stress and anxiety are so prevalent in today's world. It is certain that the race for progress and the strong competitiveness of society and its education system condition children to become alienated and profit-driven adults. A balance needs to be found. Without being too radical, reaching higher levels of empathy and mental health support given in schools nowadays, could be a first positive step towards change.

Focusing on that perspective, my new designed attempt would target school groups of middle-aged children and facilitate interpersonal exchanges, practical mindfulness and human debates between adults and young people. In other words, a progressive educational space, re-evaluating the conscious and grounded experience of one's life in a world of constant, rapid mutations. I now ask myself, which design system could work in introducing active, mindful participation within the collective classroom space?

Mindfulness is recently gaining more public attention. We notice a current boom in initiatives towards wellbeing and better consideration of the individual. As an example, The Anna Freud Center is currently running a UK study named 'Inspire', introducing mindfulness as part of the national curriculum, through awareness classes, relaxation exercises and meditation. Though, it could be pushed forward.

Considering all this research and experiments, I started to draft a designed set of rugs allowing children to lie down, meditate, exercise and debate. Weaving will still be introduced by the textural aspect itself of the surface. The system will also be developped as a talking pillow with each rug stating words, topics of discussions opening up debates over the co-creation of the social classroom -break-schedule-pressure-community. etc. The emphasis is placed on the experience of understanding the feeling of being oneself within the environment, both in the present (as child) and in the future (as adults). My role here, as facilitator, is to provide enough informations, structure and materials for the experiment to thrive; and enough 'free' space to not over-power the specific needs of different classroom environments. Education has a role to play in the support of healthy and peculiar individual's learning journey.

Summerhill school is one positive example of a self-governed, co-designed community. "Our school decision-making process is democratic. Each adult and child has an equal vote." In a utopian world, perhaps my framework could, uniquely, facilitate the voting of common rules, as this affects everyone's well-being.

The outcome, informed by the craft, various experiments, my personal learning curve and a new approach to spatial participative mindfulness, is definitely one way to challenge our current relation with the I and the It in education and society nowadays. This conscious experience of body language intertwined with a re-discovery of the senses, the space and others will allow this third space to flourish. The focus is placed on the acknowledgement of the self and the community and how they can smoothly function together. Really, "We live at the same time in the common property world and in a private world" (Merleau-Ponty 2008, 335).

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A second project, on museum, provided me with more elements to critically reflect on another learning environment: the structure & agenda of the museum. The brief brings up another kind of challenge, it is anchored in reality. In fact, I will design an interactive for the '150 years of postcards' exhibition. This experience definitely supports my ongoing search for balance in between theory and practice.

The museum institution is shifting in its purpose and aspirations. Rapid societal developments urges the need for a change in the current museum definition. Debates are vivid, international committees are struggling to find agreements.

As of now: “A museum is a non-profit, permanent institution in the service of society and its development, open to the public, which acquires, conserves, researches, communicates and exhibits the tangible and intangible heritage of humanity and its environment for the purposes of education, study and enjoyment.” (24 August 2007, ICOM, current definition)

A new definition was proposed in 2019, but got refused; categorised as outrageously inappropriate and politicaly-driven. Its lengthen, utopian formulations around equal rights, transparency, social justice and planetary wellbeing, potentially, does not represent what museums and cultural spaces are at the moment. The situation remains unclear. However, this call for hope and action inspires me deeply; things are starting to move and knowledge structures are being open to new, great potentialities.

Following my interest of creating tools for a greater interactive understanding of space, I primarily focused on designing a transparent publication encouraging visitors to be actors in the writing of the new museum definition. My positionning within the critical discourse was necessary to start clearly conceiving my final interactive for the Postal Museum. My first outcome, a 10 pages publication, leaves, meaningfully, fill-in-blanks texts and spaces to engage the public in a guided creative brainstorming. My intentions are to easily generate ideas and to collect countless personal perceptions of the museum, present and future.

To work out an enhanced, enjoyable experience for all, I experimented with ways to conduct the visitor through its pre-existing knowledge and awareness of the cultural space. Customisations and disruptions are encouraged. The conceptual window created by the page frame situates the artefact and the information it holds in dedicated environments, both the wire and the proposition. You are being considered within the co-creation of 'futurabilities'.

The artefact works as a sophisticated metaphor of the twenty-first century' museum. The use of glass as medium and the standardised printed format question the notions of transparency and openness. The publication's thickness allows it to stand on its own, as an exhibit piece. It becomes object of contemplation and a significant evidence of culture, in this instance, of the human participation towards collective knowledge.

“Visitors stop being passive observers; they change instead to active players who feel they’re somehow influencing the outcome of events.” (Sarah Fellows, Museum at play, p19)

Interactions transform the museum into a social and creative space. A greater visitor inclusivity, as primary source of knowledge, could enrich a positive learning and teaching practice in the everyday.

“Games allow the audience to look at objects in different ways, giving permission to question previous assumptions about the museum, its content and its place in the users’ lives. A recurring theme is the museum’s shift from a traditional “keeper of artefact” to a collection of “stories”. (Katy Beale, Museum at play, p24)

As a second step, I designed a speculative workshop for the '150 years of Postcards' exhibition. Visitors are invited to imagine future means of communications, their own view on the future of postcards. Will be at their disposal, a designed set of blank postcards and contextual stickers to set up imaginary scenarios. Indeed, they are part of the story, they are the story, they are writing the story.

The power is given to the public to construct singular narratives. They will also be able to slide their newly found ideas and stories on a wall display. They are given immediate power over the exhibition.

The 'Changing Relationships to Play' workshop ('Permission to Play') given at the Wellcome Collection in February 2020, investigates ways to play, educate and spark creativity in same ways. The system escorts you through the re-creation of specific museum spaces by picking 3 cards -an urban space or feature… -that senses or measures… -that makes you… - Together they form a context for you invention.

“How might creativity be nurtured in learners, teachers as well as in our existing and future learning environments?” ('Teaching for Creativity', medium.com, Nov 9, 2018)

As these two projects unfolds, I strongly confirm my interests for a search towards creative teaching and learning through space and participation. I wish to provide people with clever and accessible tools to comprehend their environment and the creative impact they can have on it. Such interactions will hopefully lead towards a growing inclusiveness in the (re)creation of the common world.

⬛️ ANALYSIS Both of my design processes, for classroom and museum, strongly relied on the thinking foundations of my practice. Indeed, the process of conscious experience is acquired within the very walls of schools, within the home or other learning environments such as museums. These social, educational spaces are key and build on our understanding of the local and global environments surrounding us. In a positive or negative way, they do shape our vision of the world and the role we will have to play in it.

For the museum brief, my capacity of balancing theory and practice was well challenged. Indeed, I wished to work on the museum and for the museum at the same time, incorporating conceptual notions of progressive structures as well as tangible informations and systems to be used by specific audiences. This quest for legibility, accessibility and theoretical depth is certainly very ambitious to achieve, and can sometimes make the outcome unclear on both sides. However, I try to push my practice further everytime by experimenting and user testing a lot.

As with my classroom brief, mutliple attempts were necessary to finally realise that the scope of action had been mistaken from the beginning. By printing out one, two, three versions of step-by-step guides I understood that focusing on single individual's learning experiences were maybe less efficient and impactful than reaching out established classrooms, and so, the educational system itself.

On another level, aligning my medium choice with the brief and re-considering the act of creating the surface and its content everytime helps the generation of exciting and playful situations, as I am constantly learning as well. Co-creation is also, in the end, still a difficult process to attain or even enjoy fully. Letting go challenges my control over visuals and narratives. Nonetheless, a consensus can still be found between authorship and participation. Studios like Metahaven, do combine both aspects and still have some control over the visual creation or written texts. As long as what's being presented sparks discussions and engage people in action, a meaningful piece of work has been, in my point of view, accomplished.

"To design is to express something while disappearing as an author, even though you are the author. That is also unlike art. Designers are stealth authors, secret agents, ghostwriters. Yet, the definition of “ designer ” and what a designer is doing is not something that is fixed for eternity. There have always been different kinds of designers and different interpretations of design as an activity, including the social and political implications. Unlike what we are being told, it is not that all these interpretations merely peacefully coexist."(https://indexgrafik.fr/in-pratice-metahaven/)

⬛️ BIBLIOGRAPHY

¹ Karl Marx, (1818 –1883) , Theory of Alienation. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marx%27s_theory_of_alienation)

² The Situationists International, (1957 –1972), On Marx’s Theory of Alienation. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Situationist_International)

³ Guy Debord, 1967, The Society Of The Spectacle.

⁴ Spike Art Magazine, 2014, Artist’s favourites by Metahaven. (http://www.spikeartmagazine.com/articles/artists-favourites-3)

⁵ (1925–1995) Gilles Deleuze, and (1930–1992) Félix Guattari on Geophilosophy. (https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gilles_Deleuze)

⁶ on Gilles Deleuze. (https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gilles_Deleuze)

⁷ on Psychogeography. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychogeography)

⁸ The Rodina, 2015, Action to Surface. (https://www.therodina.com/actiontosurface/)

⁹ on Phenomenology. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phenomenology_(philosophy))

¹⁰ Liene Jakobsone, 2017, Critical design as approach to next thinking, The Design Journal. (https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/14606925.2017.1352923)

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