𝙁 𝘼 𝙇 𝙇 - Being Nature Retreat in Italy September 2023

𝙁 𝘼 𝙇 𝙇 - 𝗥𝗲𝗰𝗹𝗮𝗶𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗻𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗰𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗷𝗼𝘆 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 10 days Being Nature Retreat - Ecosomatics, Embodied Poetry and Contact Improvisation with Dolores Dewhurst Marks. 17 - 26 September 2023 Lago Maggiore, Italy 𝗕𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗡𝗮𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁 encourages people to discover their own way of connecting with deeper self and the natural world. Inspiring them to feel nature as part of their body, and from that embodied understanding move towards positive change, with acknowledgement of the current environmental situation. Offering space for exploration, collaboration, artistic expression and environmental activism. Learning about nature and the body experientially according to contemporary science. Emphasising their corresponding imagery, logic and shared ecologies. Incorporating approaches from somatic and contemplative practices, contact improvisation, and body-mind centering. Presented in the format of workshops of different durations, both in the studio and out in nature. Engaging artistically, including writing poetry, making performances and short poetic dance films with participants, in collaboration with videographers, photographers, poets, and movement researchers. The retreat is an embodied inquiry into our interdependency, opening our senses to what is present, and making intuitive choices based on the larger context of our shared ecologies. 𝘏𝘰𝘸 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘸𝘦 𝘥𝘦𝘦𝘱𝘦𝘯 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘯𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘷𝘦𝘴, 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘭 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥? 𝗗𝗲𝘀𝗰𝗿𝗶𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁: Reclaiming our nature and discovering joy in transition. Embracing loss and disappearance while attending to the enlivening present and the gifts of transformation. True encounter with change and unchanging, a pilgrimage of the fullness of living. The fall comes as awakening, bringing questions to reveal what was conceived and reminding us to let go. In this retreat we will spend a lot of time in the forest with the river, hiking in the mountains, making improvised performances and rituals in solo and collectively, practicing Contact Improvisation, writing and sharing poetry. Most of our practice will happen in silence, giving more space for direct experience, witnessing and contemplation. It will be helpful to approach this retreat as a 𝑝𝑖𝑙𝑔𝑟𝑖𝑚𝑎𝑔𝑒; tuning to moving through occurring challenging circumstances, (which are inseparable and potentially insightful part of the process), and supporting each other. We will work only outdoors, practicing for 6 - 10 hours per day, some sessions will begin early morning, others will occur overnight. Some sessions will be open to be nude, but it is not obligatory. Each evening we will share together a hearty Italian meal, made by chef Yuri Novitsky, followed by an hour of collective performance. Participation is based on application. Full commitment to the program is required to join. The group size is 20 people. There might be the possibility of extending the program more days in the form of an artistic laboratory. 𝗖𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗯𝗼𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗔𝗿𝘁𝗶𝘀𝘁𝘀: Sasha Dodo, Ken Buslay, Irene Pons 𝗖𝗵𝗲𝗳: Yuri Novitsky 𝗖𝗼-𝗼𝗿𝗴𝗮𝗻𝗶𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘀: Bernardo Vollmer, Sasha Dodo 𝗟𝗼𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: We will be based in the village of Donego, 200 meters above Lago Maggiore lake, northern Italy. Map: https://goo.gl/maps/5xyGg3C5RfAGGwXL8 From Milan Malpensa airport it is approx 1 hour drive by bus or private car. From Milan city it is a train to Laverno, then a short ferry across the lake to Verbania, followed by a 10 minute bus to Donego stop. Cannero Riviera is the closest town, it is a 30-40 min scenic walk through the forest or 8 min by car. (3.5km distance). There you can find supermarkets, cafes & restaurants. Weather: The specific geography of Lago Maggiore makes quick changes in temperature and precipitation. It’s essential to bring a raincoat and warmer layers, on average 18*C in day and 11*C at night. 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗯𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: (includes one hearty Italian meal per day, accommodation not included) - 360 EUR / Low income price which covers the minimum cost of organization - 460 EUR / Regular 𝗔𝗰𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: - House with shared kitchen & fireplace, sleeps 8 people: 170 EUR per person for 9 nights - based on 2 people sharing a room/bed with a private bathroom. - Private accommodation options are available on airbnb, and are a short driving distance away (requiring your own car). 𝗙𝗼𝗼𝗱: One hearty Italian early evening meal will be served each day. All other meals are self or collectively organized. Food can be bought from supermarkets & restaurants in Cannero and Verbania. 𝗥𝗲𝗴𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: To register fill in the application form below. Once your application has been reviewed you will be contacted. https://forms.gle/tTqF3YyrC95GcVwSA There will be a 3 partial scholarships available, apply here: https://forms.gle/S4Ut6dodnsc8gVKCA 𝗗𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗿𝗲𝘀 𝗗𝗲𝘄𝗵𝘂𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝗸𝘀 is a multidisciplinary artist, working with somatics, dance, performance, poetry and nature. Her project Being Nature, encourages people to discover their own way of connecting with deeper self and the natural world. Inspiring them to feel nature as part of their body, and from that embodied understanding move towards positive change, with acknowledgement of the current environmental situation. https://beingnature.space/ She was born and raised in London, England. Her parents were environmental and social activists, and entrepreneurs in the health food movement of the 1980’s. For over 20 years her father worked for one of the UK's leading recycling organisations. Her mother, a sociology major, worked in social welfare for governmental and charitable bodies, and supported local and national environmental protests, by informing protestors of their civil rights. Their care for environmental conservation, social responsibility and independent initiative has deeply inspired her work as an artist and curator. As a member of Woodcraft Folk, a co-operative movement for young people, she was educated on world issues such as the environment, world debt, global conflict and sustainable development. In 2010, Dolores was introduced to Contact Improvisation and Buddhism, while studying a bachelor's degree in contemporary dance and choreography at Roehampton University, London. She then went on to study Body-Mind Centering with Bonnie Bainbridge Cohen in Berkeley, USA, and with MOVEUS in Germany. Whilst living nomadically for 8 years, she participated, organized and taught in international CI festivals and workshops throughout Europe, USA and Asia. In 2018, she began an ongoing artistic collaboration with Sasha Dødø, directing and curating REVERSE RIVERS COMPANY, a vehicle for their artistic work; ART CONTINUUM NOMADIC RESIDENCY, designed for international artistic exchange, development and production of art, focused in fields of dance improvisation, performance, poetry and film; TOWARDS, center for education and research of Contact Improvisation, and is co-author of THE LOST PLACE book of poetry and FORGOTTEN POEM, a contemplative poetic dance film. https://reverserivers.com/ https://artcontinuum.space https://towards.contact Since 2020, they are based in Thailand, teaching workshops and retreats; organizing art residencies and events including Thailand Contact Improvisation Conference and Being Nature Gathering. 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗰𝘁: [email protected] https://beingnature.space/