Announcing the Program on Advanced Divination

A four-day workshop dedicated to the development of new divinatory practices.

Albert Anker, “Fortune Teller”

Practices of divination — from astrology and haruspicy to tea leaves and tarot — have been part of every culture since time immemorial.

There is no reason to believe that these practices will ever fully disappear. Indeed, as the global situation becomes ever more uncertain, there is good reason to believe that these practices may see the opposite. We believe that a resurgence in divinatory practice is likely as societies worldwide experience a deep-seated need for guidance and reassurance in the coming decades.

It should be recognized at the outset that divination is not just about the attempt to determine the future. It is also a social practice, a ritual that facilitates both self-exploration and exploration amongst people and communities. To that end, as society changes, so too will it fashion new divinatory methods and modify existing ones to meet its needs.

This raises the idea that divination itself can be something which is actively tinkered with. We can try out different methods, craft new artifacts to facilitate ritual, and experiment with novel interpretive approaches. These might unlock new possibilities in the practice, and might be the genesis of new, durable rituals within society. Some questions in this vein:

• What does the tarot of 2050 look like?
• What should the tarot of 2019 look like?
• What role can and should divination play in matters of representation, intersectionality, and resistance?

The Program on Advanced Divination (PAD) aims to engage in precisely this kind of experimentation. The program is a four day workshop which will bring together a select group of practitioners, artists, designers, and scholars to collaborate in an effort to invent and test a series of prototype divination practices. The PAD program will also feature guest speakers, who will provide lectures on a range of topics from the history of divination to the sociology of these practices.

Program Overview

PAD will take place in September 19–22, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. Fellows will be given an $1,000 stipend to help defray the costs of participation, and will be responsible for taking care of their travel, lodging, and other expenses. PAD will provide a common working space for the participants during the program.

Fellows will spend the first two days discussing and exploring divinatory concepts as a group, and two days building and experiencing each other’s projects. The experience will be interspersed with field trips to various relevant sites in and around the Los Angeles area. We intend to showcase PAD fellow projects in some public format following the meeting.

Timeline

• June 3 — PAD Applications Open
• July 1 — PAD Application Closes
• July 15 — Decisions Made
• September 19–22 — Program on Advanced Divination

Application and Expectations

PAD aims to bring together a group of fellows with a variety of backgrounds relevant to the construction of and experimentation with new divinatory practices. We define this broadly. If you have read the description of the PAD program and are seriously considering spending four focused days on this topic, odds are that you are right for the program.

Applicants might range from full-time professional practitioners of these arts, or simply those who have made divination a part of their private, personal practice. We also view a number of domains not strictly connected to established divinatory practices — illustration, design, ethnography, user research, sculpture, game design, statistics, history, architecture, and beyond — as relevant to this enterprise.

While having some depth in one or a number of divinatory practices is a plus, PAD does not require candidates to be deeply versed in the topic. However, in all cases, we do request that applicants come with an open mind and a willingness to engage with the topic genuinely, respectfully, and on its own terms.

Fellows will be required to be fully committed over the four days of the program, and to complete pre-reading and other preparatory activities prior to the session.

If you are interested in being a participant in the Program on Advanced Divination, please submit an application here. Applications are due by July 1 at midnight Pacific Time.

Applicants are asked to provide a personal statement, no more than 1000 words, addressing the following questions:

1. What is your personal relationship with divinatory practice?
2. What skills, perspectives, or experiences will you bring to the discussion?
3. Are there particular aspects of divinatory practice you would most like to explore during this fellowship? What would you like to accomplish through a fellowship at PAD?
4. Do you already have an idea for a specific project you would like to pursue? Tell us a bit about it.

If you have any questions on this application or otherwise, please reach out to Fellowship Director Tim Hwang at tim@timhwang.org.

Organization

The Program on Advanced Divination is a project of the Echo Park Institute, a theological design agency based in Los Angeles, California.