DUSTY DRIFTERS
WALKING COURSES TO GET YOU OUTDOORS
Need motivation to walk? Want to explore like a kid again? Sign Up for the most creative, fun, online walking courses we’ve ever designed. We are wanderers, walkers, and dusty drifters.
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Nocturnal Meanders: Alchemy of the Sublime
This course offers a deep dive into the nuanced art of walking at dusk, pushing the boundaries of traditional education by guiding students on immersive nocturnal journeys to explore the hidden narratives of the night. It emphasizes a departure from conventional learning, focusing on experiential engagement through walking, listening, and observing, thereby fostering a deep connection with the essence of a place. Students are encouraged to document their explorations, engage in night photography, and reflect on their experiences, illuminating the intricate relationship between light, shadow, architecture, and the sublime. This multifaceted approach cultivates a profound sensory engagement with the nocturnal world. It also challenges students to see, hear, and feel the subtleties of the night, enriching their understanding and appreciation of the unseen and the ephemeral qualities of their surroundings. The course aims to transform perceptions through this journey, encouraging students to learn with all their senses and uncover the profound connections that tie us to our environment, especially in the serene depths of night.
Downloadable Resources: Audio Tracks, Bibliography, Filmography, and Guides
Level: Beginner
Duration: 20 minutes or longer
Timeline: Repeatable / Daily / Weekly
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The Unheard City: Silent Urban Spaces
Delving into the profound quietude beneath the urban bustle, this course allows students to uncover hidden silences within the city through explorative walking. Drawing upon a rich tapestry of inspiration that includes the reflective teachings of Buddhism, the innovative silence in music by John Cage, Virginia Woolf's introspective urban wanderings, and Rachel Carson's attentive connection to nature. It challenges students to listen and find beauty in urban quietude, engaging deeply with the auditory facets of city life. The course structure facilitates a multi-sensory engagement, encouraging a transcendence beyond traditional sightseeing, enabled by immersion in the ambient sounds and silences that narrate the city's unseen stories. Through guided walks, reflective journaling, and silent observation, this course transforms walking into a meditative, inward journey. It deepens students' connection with the urban landscape and fosters profound inner reflection, inviting the discovery of tranquility and insights in the most unexpected places. By redefining the experience of silence within the bustling cityscape, it offers a fresh perspective on urban life, encouraging a mindful exploration that blends philosophical inquiry with exercise, thereby offering a transformative approach to understanding and appreciating the layered complexities of urban spaces.
Downloadable Resources: Audio Tracks, Bibliography, Filmography, and Guides
Level: Intermediate
Duration: 20 minutes or longer
Timeline: Repeatable / Daily / Weekly
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Mindfulness in Motion: The Art of Walking Meditation
This course is a transformative journey designed to infuse mindfulness into your daily walks. This unique program offers a comprehensive study of walking meditation, teaching you to cultivate presence and awareness with each step. Delve into the philosophy and practice of mindful walking, inspired by the teachings of figures like Thich Nhat Hanh, and learn to transform an everyday activity into a profound meditation and pathway to inner peace. Through engaging lessons, practical exercises, and thoughtful reflections, you will learn to synchronize your breath with your movements, enhance your body awareness, and connect deeply with your surroundings. We provide the tools to transform any walk, whether through bustling city streets or tranquil parks, into a profound experience of serenity. Discover how mindful walking can elevate your mental, emotional, and physical well-being, fostering a deeper connection with yourself and your environment. Join us on this path to mindfulness, where every step is a journey toward inner peace.
Downloadable Resources: Audio Tracks, Bibliography, Filmography, and Guides
Level: Advanced
Duration: 20 minutes or longer
Timeline: Repeatable / Daily / Weekly
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Beyond the Map: Psychogeography, Walking, and Getting Lost
This distinctive course is designed to explore the intricate dance between urban landscapes and the human psyche. As students weave through city streets, they engage in a deeply personal exploration that challenges perceptions and invites a reimagining of the spaces we navigate daily. This course is not just a theoretical endeavor but a voyage into the heart of urban environments, where every alleyway and street become a canvas for emotional and psychological discovery. Drawing inspiration from the Psychogeography movement and other artists' works, and through guided walks, reflective journaling, and creative documentation, students uncover the hidden layers of cities, learning to read the stories etched in concrete. This process deepens their understanding of psychogeography and fosters profound insights into their own emotional landscapes. By marrying the art of observation with the practice of introspection, students gain invaluable tools for personal growth, enhancing their emotional well-being and expanding their capacity for empathy and curiosity.
Downloadable Resources: Audio Tracks, Bibliography, Filmography, and Guides
Level: Advanced
Duration: 20 minutes or longer
Timeline: Repeatable / Daily / Weekly
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Drawing the Line: Mapping Aesthetic Walkscapes
Blending the act of walking with the creative expression of map-making, this course challenges students to discover the intricate relationship between physical movement and artistic documentation over a week-long journey. It encourages a reimagining of maps beyond their traditional roles as territorial ciphers, positioning them as personal and communal narratives enriched by the walker's experiences. Through daily excursions, students are guided to keenly observe and capture the nuanced layers of their environment, employing a mix of artistic methods such as drawing, writing, capturing images, and collecting tangible items from nature or urban landscapes. These practices aim to transform walks into rich, narrative-driven maps that reflect the tangible and the immaterial phenomena of the places traversed. The course aims to deepen students' understanding of their surroundings, fostering a unique blend of geographical exploration and artistic creativity, culminating in a final project that encapsulates their journey and personal insights. This innovative course seeks to cultivate an ongoing study and appreciation of the world, offering new perspectives on how we perceive, interact with, and represent our environments.
Downloadable Resources: Audio Tracks, Bibliography, Filmography, and Guides
Level: Beginner
Duration: 20 minutes or longer
Timeline: Repeatable / Daily / Weekly
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The Labyrinth Within: Artistic Perspectives on Walking
Designed to unravel the intricate ways walking serves as a canvas for artistic exploration, this course traces the footsteps of pioneering artists like Hamish Fulton, Richard Long, Marina Abramović, and others. Delving into the historical and contemporary realms of walking as an art form, this course offers students a unique opportunity to immerse themselves in the study of varied artistic methodologies and conceptual frameworks. Students will gain invaluable insights into creating their thematic walks by closely examining how these artists navigate the interplay between movement, space, and expression. This practical approach enriches their understanding of walking as a profound artistic practice–it empowers them to weave their personal experiences and observations into their creative endeavors. As a result, students will emerge from the course equipped with the skills to craft their own walking art projects, cultivating a deep, experiential comprehension of walking as a dynamic medium for artistic expression and engagement with the world.
Downloadable Resources: Audio Tracks, Bibliography, Filmography, and Guides
Level: Intermediate
Duration: 20 minutes or longer
Timeline: Repeatable / Daily / Weekly
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Contemporary Urban Wanderers: The Spectacle of Observation
In this course, students are invited to explore the intricate dynamics of modern urban life through the lens of the historically rich figures of the flâneur and flâneuse, blending 19th-century cultural insights with contemporary urban experiences. By examining the transformation of urban spaces, the role of technology in shaping public and private realms, and the evolving narratives of gender within the city, this course bridges literary analysis, cultural theory, and tangible engagement with the urban environment. Students critically engage with the ways in which digital landscapes and social changes impact the traditional act of urban wandering, encouraging them to undertake thematic explorations of the city. This multidisciplinary approach draws from art, sociology, urban planning, and digital media to delve into the personal and collective narratives that define the essence of city life today. Designed to provide a deep understanding of urban observation and participation, the course seeks to equip students with the insights needed to decode the complexities of the urban landscape, encouraging them to discover the multifaceted stories embedded in the everyday.
Downloadable Resources: Audio Tracks, Bibliography, Filmography, and Guides
Level: Beginner
Duration: 20 minutes or longer
Timeline: Repeatable / Daily / Weekly
