I don't spend all that much time thinking about how I move through a city-scape, because ninety percent of the time I am moving, it's with a specific location in mind. It's in my nature; I am always thinking about the destination, rather than the journey. The more I think about it, the derive is actually the total antithesis of how I move throught the city. Nothing I do is random, and lately, I feel it's because I haven't allowed myself the time to be random. A few weeks ago, a derive would have seemed like a great idea, but now with this new cold snap, it just seems like a deathwish.
My hope for reading week is that it warms up, even just so the chill is tolerable. If this happens, I will absolutely attempt a derive. Perhaps I'll invite someone along (spontaneous and uncharted field trip, anyone?)
For the performer/creator part of my brain, the derive is literally improvised performance; you must allow yourself to be influenced by the other actors in the scenario and the scenario itself. A good rule of thumb in improv is to constantly be making offers and saying yes. I think that rule can be applied to the derive as well. If you start saying 'no', it's because you desire too much control.
Another thing we often say in theatre is to "follow your impluse". Again, I think this is true of the derive as well. Some of the best work I've seen my peers present has been informed by a single impulsive gesture. The derive, as well, can yield amazing things if you let your feet do the thinking, as well as the walking.
RESIST NOT. There is so much to be found in the drift.
i wonder if your goal-oriented walk is different in a different city? perhaps edmonton does not facilitate drifting as much as "catching the next wave" to your goal location. i thought of this because you mentioned the cold. the cold really makes us prioritize the way we walk and where we walk to.
ReplyDeletei also like what you say about improvised performance. a performance is never just an actor acting or a viewer viewing but it has to be a sort of recognized yet unspoken exchange. drifting with this (hur hur, see what i did there?) i'm curious what you would say to the idea of the suspension of disbelief regarding derive. i would say that if we're going to run with this analogy, suspension of disbelief becomes necessary if we want to take into consideration certain roads that guide us to a dead end. if we don't believe we have come to an end then we can continue drifting.
perhaps we should see the goal location as part of a flow. ho-hum, just thoughts.
I like how you mentioned that 90% of the time, you are moving in with a specific location in mind. I think the sentiment is echoed in a lot of people's daily routines.
ReplyDeleteWhat I found particularly interesting is how you mentioned to "follow your impulse." Most of the time, it seems that we are impulsively drawn to reaching a particular destination whenever we travel. Yet, its different impulse that alters the path in which we travel. I think this happens a lot in road trips - you want to reach a particular spot, but then something along the way draws you off of the main road. You're still guided by the goal to reach a particular path, but you've been impulsively drawn into taking a different a different route.