Online Workshops Maps, Bridges, Walls
The online meeting took place on the Zoom platform. The series of workshops "Maps, bridges, walls" is carried out by the Przestrzeń Otwarcia Association in cooperation with the Political Critique Center in Cieszyn. As part of the project, we look at the border in Cieszyn, how it functions in the memory of the inhabitants, what experiences it brings to them. The physical border is also a starting point for us to reflect on what borders are for ourselves, what borders we experience on a daily basis. During the workshops, we want to invite young people to reflect on what a border is in an individual, but also political, social or cultural dimension. What is the meaning of the maps, bridges and walls associated with it symbolically? Starting from tangible, historical examples, such as the Berlin Wall or the division of Cieszyn, but also the cultural texts we propose, we want to persuade young people to make their own explorations and discoveries in this area. We will discuss how we can talk about the border from the humanistic perspective. We will also refer to the personal experiences of the participants of the classes. The series of workshops was divided into a theoretical and a practical part.
Meeting 1: Map - Context of the border, showing different ways of visualizing the border, presenting it on maps, practical classes with google maps - finding places, elements of the city's tissue that have been separated by the border.
Meeting 2: Walls - Broadcast of 2 films "Cycling the frame" and Weeping Wall" and workshop classes in groups - examples of walls around the world, reasons for building walls, function and role of walls, consequences related to the formation of walls, what traces walls leave and in what contexts are used later. Discussion about political or social events that played a significant role in our lives and when we realized their importance in the context of the walls.
Meeting 3: Bridges - the role of bridges in the integration of societies, bridges as a cultural, historical and economic element. Workshops and discussion on border bridges connecting various often different economic, cultural and historical structures
