workshops — Ayan Rezaei

Ayan Reyaei

Public Senses
2024

“Visible and mobile, my body is a thing among things; it is one of them. It is caught in the fabric of the world, and its cohesion is that of a thing. But because it sees and moves itself, it holds things in a circle around itself. Things are an annex or prolongation of my body; they are encrusted in its flesh, they are part of its full definition; the world is made of the very stuff of the body. These reversals, these antinomians, are different ways of saying that vision is caught or is made in the middle of things, where something visible undertakes to see, becomes visible for itself and through the vision of all things, where the in division of the sensing and the sensed persists, like the original fluid within the crystal.” (Maurice Merleau-Ponty, L’OEil et l’Esprit)

Can a city be translated into a language of the senses?
We open ourselves to space and time, allowing our senses to absorb and surrender to the experience. In this process, we explore the unique ways we encounter the city and aim to harness them.
To see, hear, taste, touch, and smell—these are the layers we seek to engage through the workshop, interacting with the public sphere and overlaying a sensory map onto the geographical one.
“Modernist design at large has housed the intellect and the eye, but it has left the body and the other senses, as well as our memories, imagination and dreams, homeless.”
(Juhani Pallasmaa, The Eyes of the Skin: Architecture and the Senses)

The World War in my body
2023

The workshop centred around the question ‘How did the war penetrate my house, my body and my thoughts?’ I conducted a search for traces with students to explore individual memories of the war. The workshop participants created a collective mapping from their personal experiences. The body became a place of war memory, an archive of the wars they could find in their biographies.

The Workshop was part of the Art, Education and Research module in the Department of raum&design strategien at the University of Art Linz. The results came together as the second Edition of WAAAW (World Artists Agancy Against War)
in Kunstraum Memphis.

WAAAW 2024

WAAAW 2023

Kunstraum Memphis

Crafting Manifesto
2023

Crafting an artistic manifesto is a powerful exercise in self-expression and a tool for connecting with a broader creative community. Artistic manifestos often serve as a mirror, reflecting the “Zeitgeist” of their times, encapsulating the prevailing political and social ideologies, tensions, and aspirations. Manifestos, in this context, become both a statement of intent and a call to action. They can challenge the status quo, critique existing power structures, and advocate for change, all while offering a vision of a more just or ideal society. Conversely, political and social movements can draw inspiration and momentum from the powerful imagery and rhetoric contained within artistic manifestos. This interplay between art and society underscores the capacity of manifestos to ignite dialogues, mobilize communities, and provoke thought, ultimately contributing to the broader discourse on political and social change. In this dynamic relationship, artistic manifestos emerge as potent vehicles for both reflection and transformation, bridging the realms of creativity and sociopolitical engagement.

In this workshop, students engaged in writing exercises that encouraged deep reflection on their identities as artists and individuals, while also exploring broader social and political issues. By personalizing and refining their artistic visions, I aimed to emphasize their role in shaping society and culture. Additionally, it provided stepping stones for them to observe their growth as artists and the personal changes they experience over time.

The foundation of the workshop was to cultivate openness, encouraging participants to challenge established norms and even embrace the concept of an anti-manifesto. These exercises were shared with the group, creating opportunities for collective reflection. Through this process, we worked toward a deeper understanding of each participant’s artistic identity and vision, as well as the ways these intersect with political and social realities.

The participants presented their manifesto in an performative way in a Bar with an open door for public.