Past Events & Workshops
07/23 - latest
𝑵𝒐𝒓𝒂 (2008) is based on true stories of the dancer Nora Chipaumire, who was born in Zimbabwe in 1965. In the film, Nora returns to the landscape of her childhood and takes a journey through some vivid memories of her youth. Using performance and dance, she brings her history to life in a swiftly-moving poem of sound and image. Shot entirely on location in Southern Africa, Nora includes a multitude of local performers and dancers of all ages, from young schoolchildren to ancient grandmothers, and much of the music is specially composed by a legend of Zimbabwean music: Thomas Mapfumo.
A dance film, a biography, Nora is perhaps above all a poetic visual homage to the rhythms and sounds of everyday life—from the kitchen, the school, to the outdoors—that move us. Dance, through Chipaumire’s body, becomes a vehicle for personal and collective history.
Screening courtesy of Alla Kovgan
Still by Mkrtich Malkhasyan
Film running time: 36 minutes
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𝗣𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗶𝗻𝗳𝗼
Film screening followed by informal discussion
Sunday 5 November 2023
18:30-20:00
𝘋𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯-𝘣𝘢𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯𝘵. 𝘛𝘦𝘢 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘯𝘢𝘤𝘬𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘷𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘥. 𝘍𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘧𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘭𝘴𝘰 𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘳𝘶𝘪𝘵𝘴/𝘴𝘯𝘢𝘤𝘬𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘦.
𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗴𝗲𝘁 𝘁𝗼 here: see Contact page for directions.
In this audio experience by biologist and author David George Haskell, we are invited to be attentive to the songs and stories that thrum in the air around us. Hearing three billion years of our planet’s sound evolution—a lineage of language—in the trills, hoops, barks, bugles, clicks, and pulses of the life around him, David shares the connection to both deep time and the more-than-human world that can be found when we tune in to the Earth’s orchestra. Made entirely of the tiny trembling waves in air, the fugitive, ephemeral energy that we call sound, this experience combines human speech with other voices to immerse our senses and imaginations in the generative, provoking, and unifying power of sound.
Audio story produced by Emergence Magazine.
David George Haskell is the author of 𝘚𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘞𝘪𝘭𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘉𝘳𝘰𝘬𝘦𝘯: 𝘚𝘰𝘯𝘪𝘤 𝘔𝘢𝘳𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘴, 𝘌𝘷𝘰𝘭𝘶𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯’𝘴 𝘊𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘵𝘺, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘊𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘚𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘌𝘹𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 (Viking, 2022)
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𝗟𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗷𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗲𝘆 𝗳𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝘆 𝗿𝗲𝗳𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻/𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗰𝘂𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻
Sunday 8 October 2023
The Ground Flow
18:00–19:00
𝘋𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯-𝘣𝘢𝘴𝘦𝘥. 𝘗𝘔 𝘵𝘰 𝘙𝘚𝘝𝘗.
𝘛𝘦𝘢 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘯𝘢𝘤𝘬𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘷𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘥. 𝘗𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘦 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘧𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘳𝘶𝘪𝘵𝘴/𝘴𝘯𝘢𝘤𝘬𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘦.
𝗚𝗥𝗢𝗨𝗡𝗗𝗘𝗗 & 𝗦𝗞𝗬𝗘𝗗 | 𝗘𝗖𝗢𝗦𝗢𝗠𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗖𝗦 𝗔𝗡𝗗 𝗔𝗥𝗖𝗛𝗜𝗧𝗘𝗖𝗧𝗨𝗥𝗘
𝘊𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘳𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘵𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘧𝘢𝘤𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘢 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘰 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘣𝘰𝘥𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘸𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘕𝘢𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦?
With the changes in the buildscape that are happening at a fast pace on our island and the larger context of the Anthropocene, I invite you to an interactive presentation and dialogue on the topic of Ecosomatics and Architecture. Bridging these 2 fields has been my exploration for the last few years.
If indeed architecture can facilitate a reconnection to our bodies and to wider Nature, the "side effects" would be: enhanced vitality, psychological well-being, grounding (less scattered), decreased anxiety, restfulness, increased health, increased biodiversity, flow (as opposed to friction) with the biosphere.
𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗺𝗲𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴?
The way we live, the way we design, the way we build, the way we engineer and innovate, are all determined by our perception of human-nature relationship.
Our mental makeup dictates the way we build, and in turn our buildings shape our behavior and our thought patterns. Without an inquiring mind, we are stuck, unknowingly, in this loop. A building can either enhance our vitality, or diminish it. We desire an enhancement of life, or better put, we desire an architecture that is a conduit of this Life, and not a blockade.
Architects, designers and developers have a huge leverage over human behavior. Designers who dissociate themselves from nature will generate even more disconnection in the world through their designs.
𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗺𝗲𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴
My hope for this dialogue is:
- to inspire in us an inquiring mind and openness towards depatterning
- to initiate a shift in our perception of human-nature relationship
- to inspire creative playfulness and excitement for creative/new ways of building in and with the biosphere.
𝘐𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘰𝘥𝘶𝘤𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘱𝘵𝘴 𝘴𝘶𝘤𝘩 𝘢𝘴:
# 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘰𝘳𝘺 𝘦𝘹𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯
# 𝘣𝘪𝘰𝘱𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘤 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘪𝘨𝘯
# 𝘳𝘦𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘰𝘥𝘺 (𝘦𝘯𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘤𝘦𝘱𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯, 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘦𝘴, 𝘣𝘰𝘥𝘺 𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺...)
# 𝘥𝘦𝘦𝘱 𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘭𝘰𝘨𝘺
# 𝘳𝘦𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘶𝘪𝘭𝘵 𝘦𝘯𝘷𝘪𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵
𝗔𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗺𝗲
My name is Veronica Olariu. I am an architect and designer engaged in photography, poetry, ecosomatics, freediving.
My current research and projects:
- Grounded and Skyed - research bridging ecosomatics and architecture.
- Being Nature with Dolores Dewhurst-Marks - photography and poetry
- Concept of House as Chrysalis — transformational place - the home as an extension of the surrounding landscape into the body, embedding the body into the surrounding landscape.
- Silent Forest - photo-video-sound art project bringing awareness to the extinction of bird species in the tropical forests of Southeast Asia.
In 2014 I co-founded Kaptura de Aer design studio, and in the following years participated in design events and exhibitions in my home country Romania, as well as in London, Paris, Madrid, Stockholm, Cologne, Belgrade. And then I received the gift of a 3-year “lockdown” in Thailand.
https://medium.com/grounded-and-skyed/about
𝗣𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗶𝗻𝗳𝗼
Wednesday 13 September 2023
18:30-20:00
The Ground Flow
𝘍𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘯 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘭𝘭. 𝘛𝘦𝘢 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘯𝘢𝘤𝘬𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘷𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘥. 𝘍𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘧𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘳𝘶𝘪𝘵𝘴/𝘴𝘯𝘢𝘤𝘬𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘦.
**DM @thegroundflow or email dance@thegroundflow.space to RSVP**
“The Spiritual Logic of Late Capitalism?”
An Open Forum
There is no shortage of offerings in the realm of the spiritual on Koh Phangan, with various lineages and styles of Tantric practices perhaps being the most prevalent. Without rendering judgment on beliefs, practices, and individual journeys, this forum seeks to open up a respectful space for a materialist understanding of today’s figure of the seeker/traveler, with the backdrop of pluralist globalism and the appreciation/appropriation of others’ traditions.
What are visitors seeking and why? What are the myriad factors, from lifestyle, work life, and conditions of labor “back home” to the broader socioeconomic and geopolitical forces, that have made Koh Phangan a hub of 21st-century New Age practices? How does the appeal of what’s on offer—for example, the embrace of pleasure and the “supreme affirmation of the human body and sexuality”—align with the conditions of late capitalist desires, “now projected onto the exotic mirror of the Eastern Other” as Hugh B. Urban writes in his discussion of Tantrism? Given that both giver and receiver of teachings may not necessarily be affiliated with the “East,” in today’s context, can we also deconstruct or further complicate the tropes of the “West” and the “East” within this dynamic pluralism?
This topic of discussion is inspired by Hugh B. Urban’s essay, “The Cult of Ecstasy: Tantrism, the New Age, and the Spiritual Logic of Late Capitalism,” published in History of Religions (Feb 2000). It is not necessary to read this before coming to the forum, but for those interested, you can PM for a PDF copy.
Sunday 13 August 2023
17:00 – 18:30
Free and open to all
Tea and snacks will be provided. Feel free to bring fruits/snacks to share.
**DM (@thegroundflow) or email dance@thegroundflow.space to register**
Before RuPaul's Drag Race popularized the lingo of ballroom culture (from "reading" to "shade" to "realness" and "banjee"), there was Paris Is Burning, now a classic in queer cinema. The film first gave a broader audience a glimpse into the world of New York City's ballroom scene created by and for trans and queers of color communities.
Although often viewed as a cultural documentary, the film also captures an essential aspect of the ballroom scene that puts it at the center of dance discourse: the history of voguing as a dance form, the role of embodiment and performance in self-actualization--transcendence, even--despite its imaginative base in capitalist consumer culture.
The film was released in the same year as Madonna's "Vogue," which either showcases or appropriates vogueing (or both), depending on whom you ask. Today we may also situate it as a product of its time, with a white filmmaker going into the hard-earned safe spaces of minority communities to give an account through her anthropological lens, even as the subjects' voices and nuanced perspectives arguably come across.
Film running time: 76 minutes
Screening followed by an informal discussion
5 August 2023
The Ground Flow
19:00 - 21:00
Donation-based
Tea and snacks will be provided. Feel free also to bring fruits/snacks to share.
***DM @thegroundflow or email: dance@thegroundflow.space to register***
Do you have a creative practice or are curious about tapping into your innate imaginative capacity? This workshop utilizes expressive and somatic movement, meditative breathwork, drawing and visualization to allow fresh perspectives and new connections to emerge. By priming the mindbody into a receptive state, we allow our creative intuition to blossom.
If you have an existing practice or are working on a project regardless of which medium or discipline, bring it along, whether a notebook, sketchbook, laptop, materials for crochet, macrame, painting, etc. We will devote part of the workshop to integrating the inner journey into your work and sharing experiences. For those just curious to explore, bring an open mind.
This workshop is perfect for anyone who wants to:
* Explore their creativity
* Learn somatic movement and visualization techniques to access their natural well of imagination
* Integrate movement, stretching into their everyday life
* Work on your practice or project
* Relax and de-stress
* Gain new insights into themselves
Open to anyone, no previous movement experience or creative practice required. Wear loose, comfortable clothes, bring water. Tea and snacks will also be provided.
When:
Saturday 8 July 2023, 14:00-17:00
Where:
The Ground Flow
To get here, follow directions on the Contact page
Exchange: 300THB
***Registration: DM @thegroundflow or email: dance@thegroundflow.space***
What is the relationship between racial domination and environmental destruction? How has the long history of colonial subjugation still continued in the present day and in what form? In this open forum, we will gather to share stories and insights to think about the possibility and relevance of "decolonial ecology"--and what that may also mean specifically for the rapid changes and transformation we're witnessing locally here on Koh Phangan.
Optional reading as a starting point for the discussion: https://www.greeneuropeanjournal.eu/why-we-need-a-decolonial-ecology/
1 July 23
18:00 - 19:00
Free and open to all
DM @thegroundflow or email dance@thegroundflow.space to register
Tea and snacks will be provided
Feel free to bring fruits or snacks to share.