Dings - contemporary silva rerum and community art book.
It is a collective work, moderated by two instructors and created by a group of residents prompting them to rethink and imagine their place of life. The physical result is an art book, which is a contemporary form of silve rerum (sometimes described as multi-generational home chronicle) and resembles a cross between a diary and an atlas. Through this collaborative, fully manual artwork, we can see how diverse images describe our common place of life.
Local
Poland
Gliwice (Upper Silesia), Nowa Ruda, Ziębice (Lower Silesia)
Mainly urban
It refers to other types of transformations (soft investment)
No
No
Yes
As an individual in partnership with other persons
First name: Marcin Last name: Mokry Gender: Male Nationality: Poland Address (country of permanent residence for individuals or address of the organisation)<br/>Street and number: Rachelany 7 Town: Sejny Postal code: 16-500 Country: Poland Direct Tel:+48 505 673 781 E-mail:marcin.mokry@gmail.com Website:https://www.facebook.com/dingsmiasta
First name: Karolina maria Last name: Wiśniewska Gender: Female Nationality: Poland If relevant, please select your other nationality: Poland Address (country of permanent residence for individuals or address of the organisation)<br/>Street and number: Daszyńskiego 12/1 Town: Gliwice Postal code: 44-100 Country: Poland Direct Tel:+48 608 601 061 E-mail:astra.z.kosmosu@gmail.com Website:https://www.instagram.com/love_gyyethy/
The physical result of this endeavor is an artistic object, which we called "Dings" and resembles a chronicle, an atlas of various maps and objects. Due to the creative process, its content varies each time, as it is a product of the work of the assembled team. The team consists of residents and artists-instructors Karolina Wiśniewska and Marcin Mokry. There have been 6 editions of "Dings" in various places in Poland. We started the project in 2019. Since the workshops yielded the intended results, we plan to continue the "Dings" project in future years. We realize that with each successive workshop the value of the project - as a whole - increases.
Artbook
Common
Place
Enviroment
Recognition
By working in multi-generational groups, participants can see the evolution of a place over time, its changes in urban, cultural, social and ecological dimensions. The final work allows residents to see how each generation experiences their place, how they use it, how they develop it and what they see it as in the future. It also helps to understand how the actions or lack of intervention by previous generations affect the current shape of the place, and to imagine how the actions of the current generation will affect the place in the future. Because the artwork is collective, all participants pay close attention when looking at the book, allowing them to realize which perceptions, fears, or desires are shared.While working on their own chapter of the book, participants gain design and writing competencies that they can use in their personal lives.
e.g:
Dings 06 / Temat Rzeka (Theme River).
Was conducted as part of GZM Metropolis' activities aimed at changing the awareness of the perception of rivers by the inhabitants of Silesia (Poland's largest post-industrial region). The activity took place during the Miedzianka po Drodze festival on the way which ensured a large number of participants. Due to the duration of the workshop (1 day, 10 hours), the individual chapters were intuitive, emotional rather than narrative. However, the "Dings" as a whole show local dreams, fears, consciousness, etc.
Our initiative is part of the trend of community art. We have noticed that art is being professionalized and individualized, and culture itself, through this phenomenon is being eroded. Therefore, we are more concerned with encouraging the creation of collective and semi-amateur rather than technically perfect works. The workshop is led by professional artists who act as instructors and inspire creative activities. By selecting appropriate graphic and literary techniques, people with no experience in these fields are able to create aesthetically appealing works. During the workshop, participants acquire broad cultural competencies: Knowledge of book design and graphic techniques. Knowledge in the field of poetics, the latest poetic techniques and narrative writing in a literary book. Knowledge of mapping in cultural and historical aspects. Knowledge of important, including lesser-known, elements of cultural heritage. The ability to create Silva Rerum – an artistic multi-generational memoir using various techniques. The ability to bind a book at home.
Through participation in the project, participants have the opportunity to become creators of a full-fledged artistic work. They gain broad cultural competencies that help them interact with world-class works of art, as well as practice selected techniques in their own way. By working together, participants pay attention to the work of others. This allows everyone to realize how diverse perceptions, fears, and desires can describe their shared place of life. Thanks to the presence of the "Dings" artbook at the Ogólnopolski Przegląd Sztuki Książki (National Book Art Review) 2022/23, participants were able to see that the result of their work was appreciated by professional artists and exhibited in art gallery spaces in Krakow and Wroclaw.
The concept of "Dings" is to conduct a workshop that is accessible to all interested residents. We also reach out to social groups that would never choose similar workshops as a way to spend their free time. All previous editions of "Dings" have been free of charge, and have been financed by city institutions, cultural institutions, foundations or NGOs. Each time the workshop is attended by 10 to 35 participants. The number of participants depends on the specifics of the implementation. Also, the specificity and type of intervention may affect the diversity of the group. We take care of multigenerationality of participants, but in some cases (such as intervention education) we work with only one age group (Dings + Trampolina). All the techniques we use are available without specialized equipment. Each of the participants of the workshop can use knowledge for their own implementation at home.
e.g:
Dings 04, 05 / Księgi Dzielnicowe (District Books)
"Dings" was conducted as part of the activities of the Daily Support Facility Trampolina. The workshop was aimed at engaging children from marginalized districts of the city in creative activities, active contact with visual arts and literature, and realizing the uniqueness of their place of life on the city map, as well as the value of individual history. By design, all activities were organized in the neighborhoods. Children were our local guides and we helped them highlight the most interesting and important places from their subjective point of view, as well as the potential of their neighborhoods. Completed artbooks of “Dings 04, 05 / Księgi Dzielnicowe" were qualified for the Ogólnopolski Przegląd Sztuki Książki (National Book Art Review) 2022/23 exhibition. Workshop participants were invited to the opening which allowed them to see the value of their work, and gave them a sense of pride.
Workshop participants gain broad cultural competence in graphic design and modern poetics. With the acquired knowledge, they have an easier perception of contemporary art. All the techniques we use are available without specialized equipment. Each of the workshop participants can use the acquired knowledge for their own realizations at home.
Each time the result of the work is an artifact/artbook and its electronic copy, made available on the Internet. The ever-growing library of "Dings" archives the memory of people living in different places. Since the art book is a collective work, participants pay attention to each other's works. This allows everyone to realize how diverse stories, ideas, fears, and desires can describe their common place of life.
With successive editions, the recognition of this project grows, giving it the prospect of continuing in other places and contexts. We have recognized that it is also a good tool for social research usable by various institutions (cooperation with the Metropolis GZM)
Dings 03 / Nowa Ruda
"Dings" was conducted as part of the Mountains of Literature festival organized by the Olga Tokarczuk Foundation. It aimed to integrate the local community into the festival activities. Due to the specific nature of the town of Nowa Ruda (a place with high unemployment and little access to culture), residents approached the cultural activities taking place in the town with distance.
The workshops were free of charge. They were held in the center, by the gallery located in the building of the former mine bar (an important place for the local community). Our mobile workshop stand aroused the curiosity of the residents and thus we were able to encourage them to tell their story, which we then recorded in an artbook - "Dings". These meetings were accompanied by conversations about the festival taking place in their city.
All "Dings" were created in cooperation with external organizations and specific workshops were modified depending on the goal. However, they were always about mapping the place, building both subjective and collective awareness of the place, and integrating the local community. We use artistic processes that are culturally appropriate and considerate of the skills, knowledge and cognitive capacity of participants.
e.g.
Dings 06 / Temat Rzeka
The Metropolis GZM is a metropolitan association located in the Silesian province, in the area of the Upper Silesian conurbation. We were invited to use the "Dings" methodology to study the awareness of the region's residents about the rivers of Silesia. Given the nature of the region, rivers were a functional part of the industrial infrastructure. As the nature of the region changes (away from heavy industry), the function of the river is also changing. This activity was part of a larger effort by the GZM Metropolis exploring the new functions of Silesia's rivers. The result obtained (book) is used in training activities of the Metropolis.
Dings 03 / Nowa Ruda
The Literary Heights Festival is a Polish literary festival founded in 2015 which takes place in the vicinity of Nowa Ruda. An attempt to build relationships between the residents of Nowa Ruda and the participants of the literary festival - 2 completely different social groups.
Dings 04, 05 / Księgi Dzielnicowe
Street educators of the Daily Support Facility Trampolina work in marginalized districts of the city. Trampoline's activities include workshops and classes for children and adolescents. Trampoline's activities are free of charge for participants. Our task was to engage children from marginalized districts of Gliwice to take creative action, actively interact with visual arts and literature, and realize the uniqueness of their place of life on the city map, as well as the value of individual history.
Elements of knowledge in the fields of humanities, sociology and art. Knowledge of how artistic practice intersects with the needs of community arts clients and knowledge about the role community arts plays in wider culture. Knowledge about current approaches to community arts in the context of government, policy, and the communities that benefit. Knowledge about current approaches to sustainable arts. Understanding that art is produced with consideration for the wider impact of the work and its reception in relationship to its environments (social, economic, biophysical, historical and cultural).
The instructors leading the workshops are highly regarded artists in their respective fields. Their skills in the field of book making complement each other, and indicate the relationship between literature and design. Thanks to the many years of experience of artist-instructors in the field of education, all parts of the workshop are conducted in a manner tailored to the age and competence of the participants. Each participant is treated individually, and specific techniques are tailored to their skills. We prioritize identifying these skills during the first stage of the workshop. Instructors help participants build their story and then present it through appropriate artistic and literary means.
Thanks to their experience in cultural animation, the instructors are aware of the specifics of cooperation with various organizations (public offices and NGOs), as well as the possibilities and formal limitations of activities that result from this cooperation.
Poland is a place where awareness of the value of shared space is only just emerging - a trend that has been evident in larger cities for several decades, and even shorter in small towns. This is a direct result of the history of this region of Europe, which is marked by frequent changes in national borders and large migrations of people of different nationalities. "Dings" allow to start a discussion on the history of the place, its architectural peculiarities, social and environmental diversity.
"Dings", as grassroots storytelling about the place, is the beginning of building anew the identity of the place. So far, the project's field of activities has mainly covered cities in the process of dynamic change.
From areas of heavy industry to centers of new technology development like Gliwice. With the passage of time, the character of this city has changed from centralized to a city composed of a number of districts often deprived of the main meeting places (market/square). In Nowa Ruda, on the other hand, it is a transition from a prosperous mining town to a town experiencing unemployment, where lack of access to culture is not treated as a major deficit, and there is a general lack of power consciousness in the local community. Moreover, many Polish cities and municipalities mainly support mainstream development to the exclusion of grassroots initiatives and residents' interests. This is also often the intuitive perception of the place. During the workshop, one of the first stories told by residents duplicates the official narrative of the municipal authorities. Only a deeper conversation with the participants allows them to realize their own image of the place. The "Dings" project aims to open a discussion on the redefinition of where we live. It also draws attention to how residents' actions affect the environment and how changing environmental conditions affect residents' lives.
In every place there are people who have a story to tell. You just have to meet them, listen to them, and then help them artistically express their experiences, memories, fears, dreams about the place where they live.
"Dings" in its conception is an activity designed for different areas and is not tied to a specific place. Using the same methodology, we can adapt "Dings" to the needs and capabilities of the host organization.
The workshops are led by professional artists who act as instructors and inspire creative activities. We help participants create a story about a topic of their choice. With both literary and design experience, we guide the participant through techniques for building a narrative in words and images.
During the workshop, the most important thing is to find relevant themes, each participant's story regarding his/her relationship with the place. Therefore, the class begins with a conversation about subjective experience. We are committed to guiding participants into a subjective space, abandoning the "official", typical narrative built by city offices and tourist brochures. Thus building awareness, belief in the possibility of change and redefinition of the place.
The techniques used during the workshop: drawing, collage, pop-up, black-out poetry, calligraphy, typing, Polaroid photography, carbon paper reflection, monotype, letraset (dry transfer), allow to achieve very good visual effects with little creative experience of the participants. Then, they will use the knowledge they learned to create their own chapter in a collective atlas of their locality. The material result of this activity is a unique artbook "Dings", a film documenting the book and an electronic version. The project is aimed at different social and age groups with any literary and design experience. We use artistic processes that are culturally appropriate and considerate of the skills, knowledge and cognitive capacity of participants.
The content of social identities can direct group members to act in more or less pro-environmental ways. Climate change adaptation is influenced by social identity processes - how people view themselves, others and their place in the world around them. The results of many researches show that adaptation policies are more likely to be effective when they give individuals confidence in the continuity of their in-groups, enhance the self-esteem of these groups, and develop their sense of self-efficacy.These processes of identity formation and evolution are therefore central to individual and collective responses to climate risks. "Dings" is a way for us to discuss and share our identities in the context of our common place of residence.
Social Art Award: We are the people - Peaceful Revolutions
In 2019, "Dings" was selected for the book Social Art Award: We are the people - Peaceful Revolutions. Social Art Award book is a collection of inspiring art works and projects dealing with important societal issues around the world.
International Conference "Philosophy and Cartography"and exhibition "Map/ Territory".
K. Wiśniewska and M. Mokry took part in the international conference "Philosophy and Cartography" which was held in the University of Wroclaw and the Academy of Art and Design in Wroclaw. During the conference together they delivered a lecture titled "Dings as a multiple cross-section of a given place-co-being", on the basis of which they prepared an article (submitted already for a monograph "Philosophy and Cartography. Aesthetic, Political, Ethical and Technological Aspects of Mapping" in the Brill publishing house).
Art book fair LA ART BOOK FAIR at MOCA in Los Angeles
In 2020, "Dings" was selected for the world's largest art book fair LA ART BOOK FAIR at MOCA in Los Angeles
Ogólnopolski Przegląd Sztuki Książki
In 2022, "Dings" was selected for the national artbook exibition in Kraków and Wrocław.
Dings 04, 05 / Księgi Dzielnicowe
Carried out together with street educators of the TRAMPOLINA Day Support Facility. "Dings" artbooks were qualified for the National Book Art Review exhibition. Children went to the opening - where books co-created by children were presented - for a visit. For many of them it was the first trip outside the province to another city in their lives, as well as the first visit to a gallery.
Dings 06 / Temat Rzeka
Carried out at the invitation of the Metropolis GZM. "Dings" was used to explore the awareness of the region's residents about the rivers of Silesia. This activity was a fragment of a larger GZM Metropolis activity investigating new functions of Silesian rivers. The result obtained (the book) is used in training activities of the Metropolis
"Dings" is simultaneously a communal and individual activity. "Dings" is a great tool to reflect on how values vary among people and over time, while critically evaluating how they align with sustainability values. Helps to acknowledge that humans are part of nature; and to respect the needs and rights of other species and of nature itself in order to restore and regenerate healthy and resilient ecosystems. In many cases, during workshops, people spontaneously imagine alternative sustainable futures.
e.g.:
Dings 06 / Temat Rzeka
Defining the common dream of the region's residents. Changing perceptions of the river in an industrial region where, due to the nature of the place, the river has traditionally not been seen as a community gathering element, but rather as a functional element of industrial space ( a sewer). With the changing nature of the place - the closing of mines, the move away from heavy industry - attitudes toward nature are also changing. "Dings" helped define what the collective dream of the region's residents is, and explore whether they have a sense of agency.
