A Journal of Resistance During COVID-19 | Another Week...

Another week passed. I am still healthy and serene despite the various harassments, but the past week has been extremely challenging.  In extreme circumstances like those we are currently living with the paradigm shift brought by the COVID-19 pandemic, people should be more focused on positive human values instead of greed and hatred. Such loss of human life, happening so fast and unexpectedly, should teach how vulnerable we are and that we should live compassionately, valuing constructive endeavors in respect of ourselves, the others and the environment.
       Instead I am still dealing with the greed from my ex-husband. He dragged me for several years in a brutal corrupt divorce litigation, ruled by a former judge and where I did not have proper legal representation, My divorce story is not unique; I am joined by over a thousand other people who had to suffer tremendous injustice, as you can read in this petition.  Even during COVID-19 is still taking advantage of me, not only financially but also destroying my artwork at Sun Farm. 

Sun Farm

    Another challenge in the past month of "stay home" has been the daily exposure to the inconsiderate and rude behavior of the neighbors from the apartment upstairs. Completely disrespectful of the extenuating circumstances they violate my right to quiet in my home, with annoying noises. Luckily I can still resort to my movement practice in my inner sanctum, the icosahedron.

The Icosahedron, my Inner Sanctum

Exhibitions | A Torrid Summer Night at the Whitney Museum

It is another hot and humid evening in NYC with heat advisory warning and I have just received a cutthroat settlement proposal in my traumatic divorce. The Whitney Museum pay-what-you-wish evening hours are a literally refreshing alternative to my hot and sweaty day—literally and metaphorically. After all, art has always offered solace during troubled times.

Two different seemingly different exhibitions are on view at the Whitney Museum. The sixth floor is filled with "Calder: Hypermobility" a display of mobile sculptures by Alexander Calder (1896-1976). The American sculptor developed in the early 1930s a new kinetic art form, the mobile—a sculptural composition of suspended elements, often made of metal, finding balance in their own relational movements.  

Calder's mobile continued on the 3rd floor with the mobiles "performative" actions activated by Whitney's staff in "Small Sphere and Heavy Sphere" a recreation of the 1932-33 installation. The hypnotic movement of the found objects composition capture the audience for over twenty, eliciting, what I experienced as meditative state, which I greatly welcomed considering the stress of my day cursed by divorce matters. 

The fifth floor instead presents "Hélio Oiticica: To Organize Delirium" a retrospective of the Brazilian artist Hélio Oiticica (1937—1980). The exhibition spans from the early geometry based drawings and three-dimensional works to film and installation and participatory art, including Parangolés (wearable layers of fabric) and Penetrables (environments). The recreation of the large-scale environments "Tropicalia" and "Eden" are opened to the museum public as walkthroughs. Oiticica’s oeuvre, much involved in a political discourse, encompassed visual art, architecture, music, poetry, theater and film and was greatly influenced by the counter-culture scene of New York in the 1970s reflecting the several years spent by the artist in the city.

Finally the urban views from the museum terrace!

Toward Healing | The Sum of Parts Is Smaller Than The Whole

Aristotle stated over 2300 years ago that "the whole is something over and above its parts, and not just the sum of them all" (Metaphysics, 1045a). Aristotle's statement is one of the most basic observations on both the natural and man-made world and has become the foundation for a multitude of theories and practices based on synergy. As a design theoretician and practitioner I have been constantly experiencing the value of this fundamental observation.

A Menger sponge as visual example of whole and parts. Image from spacetecture © daniela bertol

Unfortunately "the whole being greater than the sum of its parts" is true also in negative destructive actions in personal life. I can be a perfect case study as in the past four years I have been experiencing how seemingly separated events and people have merged together to produce severe damage to my wellbeing. Some of these events are considered major life stress, each on its own: brutal divorce proceedings, betrayal from friends, lack of support from immediate family, the challenging pursue of a doctoral degree caught in the crossfire of academic politics.  Other events are something which anybody can face on a daily basis: e.g. dealing with dysfunctional public and private services, bureaucracy, delayed deliveries, rude strangers, greedy neighbors. Facing all or several of these adversities several at once can become an explosive cocktail for emotional and physical health bringing stress to dangerous levels.

A week ago I had this insight which has become a major life changer in dealing with adversities. If I am overcome the whole of negative people and events encountered in my daily life, why not dealing with each negativeness separately, deconstructing the whole into its parts.  Dealing with each negativity at the time can be accomplished especially when starting with smaller tasks. It is important to start with something we can successfully accomplish without other people—especially when the others are  narcissistic obstructionist spouses and family members. 

Logic is an important component of Greek, and overall, philosophy. Therefore, whenever the whole points to negative actions and effects, why not changing "the whole is greater than the sum of its parts" into "the sum of parts is smaller than the whole"?

copying strategies | Healing by the Sea: Surviving Divorce Brutality, Academic Politics, Financial Institution Abuse and Home Renovation

Mar Tirreno and I. Photo by Silvia Bordini

Swimming by memory lane —metaphorically and literally—is the survival means du jour. The past month has been definitely not boring, unfortunately for the wrong reasons. At once I have been dealing with several stressor, which usually are enough to impact wellbeing even one at the time; the caused of my stress are also spread in three continents:

1. Dealing with financial losses for my retirement account due to the underperforming of Fidelity Investment and their "professionally managed" (how ludicrous!) team, most recently by their appointed team at almost unheard NorthCoast; probably my outrage is shared by many others from the 99% crowd. It looks like Fidelity and NorthCoast Asset Management are using small retirement account as guinea pigs .
2. dealing once again with academic politics in Australia, denying financial assistance to present at the Symmetry conference in Vienna and creating many other obstructions to the completion of my doctoral research
3. Flashbacks of my life in NYC, dealing with domestic abuse, bullying and lack of a supportive community—namely my divorcé brainwashed by his greedy family, my close-minded hateful neighbors, lack of a legal-social infrastructure to assist victims of bullying, the greed of the divorce "industry".
4. Last but not least, my Rome home renovation: frustration with contractors are commonplace but in my case has become a huge stress factor in conjunction with all of the above.

I decide to go with Silvia to the beach accessible by Cancelli of Castelporziano, to resort to the soothing power of the Mediterranean sea as relief of the extreme stress. Castelporziano is part of the Litorale Romano, located south of the mouth of the river Tevere, and is ecologically characterized by dunes and vegetation typical of Macchia Mediterranea. It was part of the adjacent presidential estate (Tenuta Presidential) unti president Saragat in the mid-sixties transferred the beachfront part of the property to the municipality of Rome.
   We enter the beach at the former "Ar Buco", the alternative beach from the seventies and eighties, still a quiet, enjoyable spot. Swimming and conversations—about life, art and life as art—brings grounding about living in a simple yet meaningful way, escaping from the various vultures which are brutally attacking my peace of mind these days.
   The psychosomatic practice "Finding the Axis Mundi" could not have a better place and time: the meeting between the Mediterranean Sea at almost sunset, in geospatial terms 41.67102, 12.3949 at 2016 07 27 17:43 GMT.

Finding the Axis Mundi by mar Tirreno

Rome and its surrounding are magical and its theatrical beauty acts like a healing potion. Walking through the many centuries old streets makes you feel the power of urban space to generate beauty and inspire. And most of all there is still a sense of community: places and people interact in a continuum evolving through times. Walking in the neighborhood of my childhood I still recognize stores and people. Yes Rome is eternal, timeless and somehow comforting.

practice | Healing While the Sun Is Rising

divorce brutality & healing | Central Park, Walking in the Ramble

Walking has become a metaphor for my life these days —besides providing healing while I am trying to keep my sanity struggling with the divorce brutality. 

During my morning walk in Central Park I kept getting lost in familiar grounds, the Ramble, where I have been walking probably almost hundreds time, in any season.
But I have finally, found sunlight to orient and guide me in the darkness. Quite a metaphor...