The Art of Presence as a transferable skill

Breakout Session 1: Wednesday, 18 June (16:30 - 18:30)
Elisabeth Dahl, Kristiania University of Applied Sciences, Oslo, Norway

In a rapidly changing world and job market, the skill of presence becomes a vital quality innate to all of us. Presence is a skill that can be practiced by engaging our mind and body, particularly in connection with others. Social anthropologists argue that evolution was sparked when early humans gathered around a fire to tell stories about 70,000 years ago. This required complete presence —to listen and speak while staying alert to predators —and, to this day, presence remains critical for survival. Drawing on the work of Professor Patsy Rodenburg OBE, particularly her Circles of Energy™, an Artistic Research project at Kristiania in 2022 explored how to sustain physical, vocal, and emotional energy in large spaces without pushing. Facilitated by a voice and speech instructor and accredited PRA Associate, this workshop will explore practical tools for cultivating presence, enabling participants to interact and speak with impact when addressing any audience.

"The Listening Lens". How sound might ignite novel ideas across all art forms.

Breakout Session 1: Wednesday, 18 June (16:30 - 18:30)
Anne Regine Klovholt, Elisabeth Monge, Kristiania University of Applied Sciences, Oslo, Norway

Viewing sound as a key to unlocking creative potential rather than background noise, this workshop invites participants to explore how to actively engage their auditory skills. Auditory perception provides a multi-layered pathway to more flexible ideas in interdisciplinary art forms, which are often dominated by visual expression. Rooted in the idea that our everyday experiences are a direct source of creative inspiration, this session demonstrates how the sounds of our surroundings catalyse stories. Diving into a site-specific sound exploration, participants will work with ambient sounds from diverse locations in Oslo. This will serve as raw material for developing narratives and immersive environments, unveiling new pathways for artistic expression. Embracing the inherent ambiguity of sounds opens a world of interpretative possibilities. The workshop will combine field recording with group listening and reflection, exercises designed to enhance auditory skills as discrimination, identification, and comprehension, while increasing our presence in the creative process.

Learning with space(s): How can art educators at universities design spaces to trigger life- integrated learning experiences?

Breakout Session 4: Thursday, 19 June (14:30 - 16:30)
Corina Forthuber, Iris Laner, Mozarteum University Salzburg, Austria

Although our learning environment profoundly impacts the learning process, art and design educators at universities are hardly asked to design the spaces in which they teach. Learning spaces are often predetermined, without considering the specific needs of learning experiences. Universities must host teaching and practice activities with diverse aims, which requires multi-functional spaces, often resulting in neutral, monochrome designs. Looking at learning spaces in public areas, such as parks, it becomes clear that life-integrated approaches are promote experiences by being challenging, demanding, or inviting. Successful school building concepts involve future users —teachers and students—participating in the creation of a requirements catalogue, contributing directly to the design process. In this workshop, learning spaces in art universities will be contrasted with those in public spaces to reflect on life-integrated teaching methods in art education, considering how the design of learning spaces contributes to the educational experience.

Underground clubbing as space for Conscious Escapism

Breakout Session 4: Thursday, 19 June (14:30 - 16:30)
Alan Boom, Fontys Academy of the Arts, Tilburg, The Netherlands

The multitude of global challenges, including natural disasters and human rights violations, can instigate feelings of overwhelm and distress. While running away from dealing with such emotions is a natural response, is there an alternative that protects psychological well-being while staying connected to the issues? Fremdkörper is a creative laboratory for exploring “conscious escapism”, a valuable coping mechanism that creates a psychological buffer in times of chaos. By mirroring the setting of an underground nightclub, Fremdkörper aims to bring people to a state of ecstasy, where new ideas are born, and motivation is reignited. After temporarily escaping from overwhelming situations into a reflective, mysterious environment, individuals return to reality feeling motivated to work through the challenges they are facing. The aim of this session is to delve into the transformative power of Fremdkörper’s nightclub-inspired performances, using life-integrated learning as an effective coping mechanism and guide for navigating the complex challenges of our time.