MondaysAugust 15, 2005Monday Night 08.15.05– Stephanie Rothenberg – Divining WorkshopMonday Night 08.15.05– Stephanie Rothenberg – Divining Workshop
____________________________________________________ what: An introductory workshop on basic divination
____________________________________________________ The workshop intention is to provide a framework for re-experiencing our sensory faculties or rather our sense/ability. Divining in a culture subsumed by technology is a way to initiate discussion on how information is collected both empirically and esoterically, and on how processes of collection determine use value. ____________________________________________________ Divining, or dowsing as it is sometimes called, is an ancient art that enables the practitioner to obtain normally imperceptible information. Most people associate divining with a forked stick used to find water, yet divining can be used to search for almost anything. The American Society of Dowsers calls dowsing the “indago felix”, Latin for the fruitful search. Both utilitarian and esoteric, divining has been and is currently used by a broad range of people, organizations, corporations, and governments. The practice experienced a revival during the new age movement in the 1980s but has been around for centuries. In the early 20th century, the US Geological Survey Association used divining to search for water and to map out territories. US marines in Vietnam used divining to search for underground land mines. Pharmaceutical companies such as Hoffman-La Roche divine for water prior to building new manufacturing plants. Under funded communities in Central America and southern India are being taught how to use divining to find potable water and construct inexpensive drilling and pumping systems. And of course we can’t forget Moses who used his divining tool to part the Red Sea.
Stephanie Rothenberg incorporates a broad range of tools and techniques to create interactive situations that question relationships between individuals and socially constructed identities, lifestyles and public spaces. She became interested in divining several years ago during a computer file management crisis. She has attended divining workshops at the American Society of Dowsers and has developed an affinity for the L-rods. Stephanie’s artwork has been shown in media festivals and galleries in the US and abroad including ISEA 2004, New York Digital Salon, Studio XX in Montreal, Thealit in Bremen, Germany and Versionfest at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago. She received her MFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and is currently Assistant Professor of Art at SUNY Buffalo. ____________________________________________________ In the quest for seeking knowledge, the world of divining bears similarity to the way computers command and control information. The diviner first “programs” his or her divining tool using a binary “code” based in Boolean yes/no logic. In the process of inquiry diviners, like computer programmers, have also been known to use “if, then” statements to obtain their desired outcomes. Other terminology used by diviners includes the phrases “hard target” and “soft target.” These expressions echo military jargon. Both the military and divining practitioners use “hard target” and “soft target” to distinguish the type of information being sought, yet unlike the US military, no diviner has been known to accidentally wreak havoc on civilian populations! In divining, hard targets include things sought that once found are tangible and visible. These may include underground water veins, missing objects or persons, and faulty mechanical parts. Soft targets can range from detrimental energy lines in the home or office that can lead to perpetual insomnia, anxiety, and even cancer, to toxins in land, produce, or the body.
Related divining projects: FAQ about dowsing from the American Society of Dowsers: British Society of Dowsers: Dowsing and Drilling Project in Central America (scroll down) Electromagnetic Spectrum and your health: wikipedia REVOLT- an internet-based international focus for public concerns about transmission lines, related energy policy and electro-magnetic fields (EMFs) OSHA National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences World Health Organization |
