The Library as a Garden – The Garden as a Library

Social Practices

Research Station


Date06/16/2023
Time13:00
LocationThe Social Practice Library (Sint Andriesstraat 194) & Community Garden de Zandweg (Kromme Zandweg 66A)
Researchers
  • Michelle Teran
  • Affiliated research project
  • Promiscuous Care Study Group

  • Social Design HFBK Hamburg × Research Centre—Social Practices research program × Research Station
    June 16, 2023, 13:00-20:00
    @ two locations in Rotterdam South

    You are invited to join a one-day workshop that will take place over two locations in Rotterdam South: the Social Practice Library and an urban garden.

    The Social Practice Library is the personal library of internationally renowned Dutch artist Jeanne van Heeswijk. Located in her studio, it contains over 4000 books, magazines, zines, and other research material. In the middle of Zuiderpark, at the de Zandweg allotment garden complex, artist and WdKA Social Practices research professor Michelle Teran uses her garden as a learning ground, where she grows food and hosts learning events.

    You will join students from the Social Design HFBK (Hamburg) who have spent the week working at the Social Practice Library, researching the collection’s content and spatial layout. To conclude the week, WdKA (Rotterdam) participants will join Social Design HFBK students. Then, as a group, you will walk from the library to the garden, where you will spend the day experimenting with different activities and ways of considering:

    • In which way does a Social Practices library extend itself beyond a library
    • How to organize research and tell stories from it
    • How is a garden a library

    Workshop schedule:

    [13:00] meeting and short introduction to the Social Practices Library
    [13:30] outro exercise; exit the library and walk to the garden bringing readings from the library
    [14:30] intro exercise; introduction to the garden
    [15:00] picnic in the garden; prepare food, garden reading practices while listening and breathing, sketching and painting, observing and annotating.
    [20:00] outro exercise; exit the garden

    This workshop is limited to 10 participants from WdKA. Please register using the Station Skills link here

    The Library as a Garden – The Garden as a Library is a collaboration between Social Design HFBK Hamburg, the WdKA Research Centre Social Practices research program, and the Research Station. This workshop is part of ongoing research by the Promiscuous Care Study Group on pedagogies of care and emerging research area Learning Grounds.

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