Thursday 1st January 1970, 12:00am

Theory at Reseda: Session 4 – The Craftsman by Richard Sennett

After 13 years and 248 sessions, Theory Tuesdays has evolved into an elemental part of Theory at Reseda, a three-part format encompassing not only theoretical discussion sessions, but public talks and an extensive, on-site library focusing on design, nature, aesthetics and architecture. The discussion sessions are held twice a month at the Reseda Zürich am Hauptbahnhof furniture showroom, more specifically, on Wednesdays from 5pm – 7pm, in both English and German. The sessions are free and open to the public.

During this fourth Theory at Reseda session, excerpts from the 2009 book The Craftsman by American author, Richard Sennett will be discussed. As with Theory Tuesdays sessions, it’s recommended to read the excerpts before attending.

A PDF of the excerpts, in both English and German, are linked below.

Sennett – The Craftsman_excerpt

Sennett – Handwerk_Auszug

Thursday 1st January 1970, 12:00am

Theory at Reseda: Session 3 – Species of Spaces by Georges Perec

During this third Theory at Reseda session, an excerpt from the book Species of Spaces (first published as Espèces d’espaces by Galilée, Paris in 1974) by French author, Georges Perec was discussed.

Participants: 4

Thursday 1st January 1970, 12:00am

Theory at Reseda: Session 2 – The Architecture of Happiness by Alain de Botton

During this second Theory at Reseda session, excerpts from the 2006 book The Architecture of Happiness by British author, Alain de Botton were discussed.

“The Architecture of Happiness will take you on a beguiling tour through the history and psychology of architecture and interior design, and will change the way you look at your home.” -Book cover

Participants: 9

Thursday 1st January 1970, 12:00am

Theory at Reseda: Session 1 – The Hidden Life of Trees by Peter Wohlleben

During this first Theory at Reseda session, excerpts from the 2016 book The Hidden Life of Trees by German forester and author, Peter Wohlleben were discussed.

“In The Hidden Life of Trees Peter Wohlleben makes the case that the forest is a social network. He draws on groundbreaking scientific discoveries to describe how trees are like human families: tree parents live together with their children, communicate with them, support them as they grow, share nutrients with those who are sick or struggling, and even warn each other of impending dangers.” -Book cover

Participants: 5

Thursday 1st January 1970, 12:00am

Session 248: “A Savage Performance” by Diana Taylor

For this lunch session, Brit Barton selected the essay “A Savage Performance: Guillermo Gómez-Peña and Coco Fusco’s ‘Couple in the Cage'” by Diana Taylor (MIT Press, 1998).

“A Savage Performance” details the 1992 international contemporary art performance by Coco Fusco and Guillermo Gómez-Peña titled, “Couple in the Cage” in which they exhibited themselves as caged Amerindians from an imaginary island.

Session location: Reseda Zürich am Hauptbahnhof

Participants: 4

Thursday 1st January 1970, 12:00am

Session 247: The Brutish Museums by Dan Hicks

For this lunch session, Aoife Rosenmeyer selected two chapters from the book The Brutish Museums: The Benin Bronzes, Colonial Violence and Cultural Restitution by Dan Hicks (Pluto Press, 2020).

“Walk into any Western museum today and you will see the curated spoils of Empire. They sit behind plate glass: dignified, tastefully lit. Accompanying pieces of card offer a name, date and place of origin. They do not mention that the objects are all stolen. Few artifacts embody this history of rapacious and extractive colonialism better than the Benin Bronzes – a collection of thousands of metal plaques and sculptures depicting the history of the Royal Court of the Obas of Benin City, Nigeria. Pillaged during a British naval attack in 1897, the loot was passed on to Queen Victoria, the British Museum and countless private collections.” -Book Cover

Session location: Reseda Zürich am Hauptbahnhof

Participants: 4

Thursday 1st January 1970, 12:00am

Session 246: Contemporary Art Writing Daily on Ed Atkins’s “The worm” with Leila Peacock

For this lunch session, Leila Peacock selected Contemporary Art Writing Daily’s text for the 2021 Ed Atkins exhibition titled “The worm”. This is the second of two back-to-back sessions focusing on experimental criticism.

Session location: Reseda Zürich am Hauptbahnhof

Participants: 10

Thursday 1st January 1970, 12:00am

Session 245: D.H. Lawrence on Edgar Allan Poe with Leila Peacock

For this inaugural lunch session, Leila Peacock selected the chapter “Edgar Allan Poe” from the book, Studies in Classic American Literature by D.H. Lawrence. This is the first of two back-to-back sessions focusing on experimental criticism.

D. H. Lawrence’s Studies in Classic American Literature was first published in 1923. With its expressionist style, poetic license and unorthodox emotionality it seems very far from the calm, collected tone expected of critics. It falls into the categories of both literature and criticism, and the very contemporary notion of ‘ficto-criticism’. Edmund Wilson, a literary critic of the time, described it as “one of the few first-rate books that have ever been written on the subject” despite “shots that do not hit the mark and moments that are quite hysterical”.

Session location: Reseda Zürich am Hauptbahnhof

Participants: 8

Thursday 1st January 1970, 12:00am

Session 241: The Selfishness of Others by Kristin Dombek

For this summer session, Linda Jensen selected excerpts from the book The Selfishness of Others by Kristin Dombek (FSG, 2016).

Have you heard of the “narcisphere”? It’s a subculture online that shares a collective contempt for narcissists (aka narcs) and advises on how to react to their ill behaviors as well as sharing grueling stories of their experiences. Kristin Dombek’s book The Selfishness of Others: An Essay on the Fear of Narcissism explores the rise of what is named the narcissist “epidemic” and goes through the history of NPD (narcissist personality disorder) and how it has become a cultural phenomenon.

For example, she looks at Freud’s interpretation of narcissism who stipulated that the archetypal narcissist was a beautiful woman or a homosexual man. Today the categorizing of narcissists is wide-ranging. There’s the Phallic Narcissist, the Corporate Narcissist, the Organizational Narcissist, the Medical Narcissist and also the Spiritual Narcissist. There’s even one that might seem forgiving, the Communal Narcissist: “Do you try to act generously, publicly align yourself with noble causes and “talk a lot about care and empathy”? You may be a Communal Narcissist.

Participants: 10

Location: Josefwiese

Thursday 1st January 1970, 12:00am

Session 244: One Number Is Worth One Word by Luis Camnitzer

For this final, rainy summer session at the Josefwiese, Leila Peacock selected excerpts from the book One Number Is Worth One Word by Luis Camnitzer (Sternberg Press, 2020).

“One Number Is Worth One Word spans over half a century of the Luis Camnitzer’s radical engagement with art education and its institutions, from his student days in Uruguay and move to New York in 1964 to his current work and writings, with many texts published for the first time. This is a singularly authoritative, anti authoritarian gathering of a life’s work in art, education, and activism.” -Book Cover

Participants: 7