Yesterday we went to Santih, a beautiful space in Lisbon. Sofia, who runs this therapeutic centre, decided to have Dreams and a Heart workshop after her yoga class and creatively link her class to the workshop.
We worked always in pairs. Sofia wanted us to experience what happens when the dolls support each other when they are standing up. She did it suggesting many different postures in which the support of the other was essential to reach the posture. It was amazing to attend a great yoga class inspired by the project.
Sofia, Sandra, Maria João e Iuliia came to the workshop, we made and meditated five dolls together and for the first time ever the dolls learned some yoga postures!
Thank you so much for the group and specially Sofia for embrace the project and merge it so creatively into your class, it was brilliant.
Hitt Húsid is a youth centre in Reykjavík where I had the privilege to run workshops last week.
We spent a morning with Valgeír, Ian, Harpa, Haraldur, Gunnar, Geir, Hjalti, Patrik, Inga, Anita, Nôi, Rosana, Audur, Tobba, Alexander, Atli and Una, a group that included disabled young people, we made 16 dolls, 4 of them I finished myself. We meditated all together at the end of the session.
I liked a lot to listen everybody speaking Icelandic while we made the dolls, the energy of this magical country is in each doll they made. We had fun talking about Reykjavík summer, father Christmas got confused and arrived beginning of July!
In the afternoon we made dolls with Hreidar, Eva, Svavar, Vigdís and Tómas, they are the staff, we completed 21 dolls in total at Hitt Húsid. We talked about lots of things including ways to bring the dolls again to Iceland.
There were lots of Icelandic flags around because this was the first year Iceland got a place at the World Cup football games, such a small group of people compared to other countries, a big achievement they had lots of fun with.
Much gratitude to Gauti who brought me here and gave us this amazing opportunity, also to Thordis and Fridrik, Hreidar and Hitt Húsid, all of them opened their doors and hearts to receive us, and thank you mysterious Ísland to bring me back sensations of my childhood, it made me cry of happiness several times, bless you.
Yesterday we went to the event ‘What are we doing to make the opera industry truly reflect the diversity of the country, on and off stage?’ at English National Opera studios in London.
I love D&D introduction, no matter I’ve heard it zillion times – the time/space matrix, all the principles, the law, the bumble bees and butterflies behaviour – also all the animals in our break out spaces, our big circle, I love it all!
I made 5 dolls inspired by the sound of everybody’s voices.
Thanks Phelim, Sarah, Ben, Anabel and everyone for another day we spent together surrounded by good conversations, thank you!
We spent yesterday at the D&D event ‘What can role-play gaming and theatre learn from each other?’ at Shoreditch Town Hall in London.
In the morning we played the Dungeon & Dragons game, it was my first time ever. I joined Chris table, he was the Dungeon Master, a kind of facilitator of the game. We played a couple of hours creating a story together. I could see all the scenes, actions and characters, Chris made us visualise perfectly well everything, he was a brilliant DM.
My character was an Elf Wizard. She lives over 700 years, she can make people sleep, she meditate deeply and live in the world but not entirely part of it. Isn’t it an amazing coincidence with the dolls’ project?
In the afternoon we did the other D&D, the Open Space one, and I called my session :
‘Help me to put dreams and a heart into my dolls. I might be travelling around other sessions, you can help me anyway.’
I was amazed by the game and wanted to join all the conversations. I did one doll in each session I went. Justin helped me make one doll which he half filled with dreams, put a heart and meditated, I completed it at home. We made 5 dolls in total.
We spent an amazing day together, such an adventure, some people like me had never played D&D before, we loved it. Thank you Chris and Chloe and all the others who shared their long experience with the game, hopefully I’ll see you soon and play it more. Thanks Justin for helping me making dolls and Alex and Ben for holding the space for us, thank you!
Friday 1st June we went to InPractice at RA, an event where creative people facing barriers accessing the art world share their practice with others.
We were honoured to be one of the first groups to inaugurate the brand new Clore Learning Centre in the new refurbished building of RA.
The artists presentation were very inspiring, it gives us hope to keep going wherever struggle we are facing in life, they give us such amazing example of positivity, it is a bliss to be with them and share our experiences.
It was a very busy evening with many people interested to make dolls while we were listening to the artist’s talks. Toria, Sarah, Nicola, Juliet, Nora, Dina, Keith, Janny, Silvia, Sylvie, Juliette, Elys, Barbara, Maria, Tom, Eliz came, we made 16 dolls, 3 of them I finished off at home and most of them I sewed the legs.
Some comments:
‘Making a body full and firm, then locating the heart, made me think of all the dreams we have that make us what we are. Brilliant.’
‘I shall miss my doll. I feel we could have been very good friends.’
‘I loved making my joyful dream-doll. Thank you.’
‘It might be like the doll of the story ‘Vasilisa the Beautiful’, the doll that helps in all sorrows, and it works.’
I love to receive people in the group, they arrive at different times, they are at different moments of the process with different needs, I take care of every doll so they don’t get lost, and when it becomes a bit calmer I take some photos and sometimes I remember to ask them to write down their comments about their experience… I love that buzz!
Thank you Molly for organising this amazing event, it is such a privilege to join the group, thank you.
Last Sunday I went to the (B)old Festival at Queen Elizabeth Hall, Southbank Centre in London.
It was a beautiful sunny day, lots of people along the river enjoying the sun. When I saw it I didn’t expect anybody to come and stay indoors with me at the market making dolls under an artificial light. I thought I would have four hours to make dolls on my own really.
There were music and dance activities at the foyer where the market was, I guess these activities attracted people to enter and look around, they found me and actually I didn’t stay for a second on my own. Steph, Rosa, Sheila, Wonchul Jung, Wei, Jared, David, Hyangmi Won, Erin and Yaanjo came and we made 11 dolls together.
We talked about many things including how much the weather influences a culture in so many levels, one of us studied geography, we are people determined by how much sun we get. Well, in my experience as a tropical woman, it feels like here is another planet, the more I adapt the more I feel the differences, at the same time, I see how much we are absolutely the same. I feel we are determined by how much sun light we have inside, how much conscious we are, the sun can shine inside us anywhere.
Helen, the coordinator of the festival, was lovely, I felt very much looked after, it was amazing!
Some comments
‘Spreading love and a sense of united humanity, also a fun experience.’
‘A lovely experience, such wonderful idea and a way of bringing people together, so positive, a way of helping others. Brilliant mindfulness exercise.’
‘After I finished making the doll, I felt that the heart of the doll started to run while I was meditating. My doll is no longer a doll. It’s a very touching experience.’
‘Paying attention to your hands, heart, breathing and mind all together at the same time. I enjoyed it.’
‘It was a very peaceful experience. The making process takes long time but I enjoyed it. I hope that the sound of my heart is in the heart of the doll.’
‘I liked stuffing and sewing the doll and meditating.’
‘It was a great unexpected pleasure to make a doll. Every moment was very relaxing and enjoyable, thank you.’
Many thanks for everybody who organized the festival, for everybody who came to the workshop, for the hope I always feel when I am with people making dolls, for all the conversations and for this project which is the most inspiring school in my life, thank you!
