Program Information:

Dates: September 13-18, 2021 

Number of Participants: 20

Educators:

Gonca Gümüşayak, Choreographer & Contemporary dance & Yoga instructor
Dilek Mengüç Lamour, Sophrologist, Pedagogue
Sena Rüya Günergin, Harvard Kennedy School of Government Teaching Fellow

General Information: 

Our bodies have wisdom. They carry our histories, the minute habits of our ancestors, the conditions of the land that we come from. Therefore, it is critical to understand how we can stay connected to, listen and learn from our bodies. For so long, the body has been a target of control and power in society, as we became used to sitting in rows in schools, listening to bells to know our next move… The body has been framed as an empty vessel that exists to support the mind. The Becoming Us workshop aims to contradict this frame by re-centering the body in learning. In this workshop, we learn specific techniques to get in touch with the wisdom of our bodies in order to be able to bring our unique histories and identities together. The movement of our bodies transcends language and lies beyond the divisions that our words can create. The workshop thus provides a platform where this “coming together” can take a form of inclusive communication that is otherwise inaccessible. To be able to exist in groups as our unique self is essential to any functioning democracy and to the art of “becoming us.”The movement and body awareness practices offered in the workshop find their roots in East Asian practices such as Tai Chi and yoga, contemporary dance and theatre, as well as Gaga movement techniques (an imagery-based movement exploration system developed by the Israeli choreographer, Ohad Naharin). The body and movement work is supported by artistic practices based in the Waldorf pedagogy as well readings and active discussions on group relations theory, and philosophy. Through the readings and the discussions created around them, the group will have the opportunity to delve deep into the inquiry of themes of power, leadership, empathy, belonging, and identity among others.

Mission:

Becoming Us workshop aims to collectively inquire into the human social condition through artistic methods that bring light to the mind-body relationship. Through movement, breathwork, mindfulness and storytelling, we research the concepts of self-identity, oneness and solidarity.

Target Audience:

Anyone who is older than 17 years old and who would like to collectively interrogate their relationship to themselves, their culture and histories, and share with others through embodiment.

Classes offered:

1. Awareness through movement - Gonca Gümüşayak

2. Discovering Our Inner World Through Breath and Attention - Dilek Mengüç

3. Making Meaning of the “Self” and “Us” Through Storytelling - Rüya Günergin

 This program is funded by the Turkish Sweedish Cooperation Unit.