The School of Radical Attention will be IN RESIDENCY at the National Academy of Design from March 31st to April 25th, offering a slate of public programs on the study and practice of radical attention. In this series of hour-long workshops each inspired by a prominent pedagogical thinker, we bring their vision of FUTURE SCHOOLS to life through somatic practice and guided discussion.
Michel Foucault was a French philosopher whose work examined how power operates by shaping behavior and dictating structures of thought not just through force, but through systems of observation, normalization and discipline that become embedded in our everyday life. Foucault’s relationship to pedagogy is rooted in his concept of docile bodies, the idea that institutions don’t just teach knowledge, they shape individuals into subjects who meet societal needs and fit within the standard model of knowledge that trains their minds and bodies to behave in predictable and regulated ways through discipline, surveillance and repetition.
In our attention practice sessions, we use artifacts from the work of visionary thinkers and educators as an occasion for collective experiences of attention. No prior knowledge of Michel Foucault is necessary; all are welcome!