Join us for a group dérive of Melbourne.
A dérive is a "technique of rapid passage through various ambiances", first proposed by the Situationist International group as an alternative way of experiencing the city, and its psychogeography. Put simply, dérive is an intentional form of getting lost.
The Situationists originally set out a series of 'interventions' and conditions to help get lost - such as taking every second right turn, or using the map of a different city to guide yourself in your own city - and encouraged doing so in groups.
Join us for an afternoon of getting lost as we take on a collective dérive of Melbourne. We will be meeting on state library lawn for a brief reading of the original text which first discussed dérive, and then will set-out a series of 'conditions' we will use to disorientate ourselves. We will then set off on foot for approximately 2 hours.
We will be taking periodic breaks, at random locations, to sit and examine our surroundings, so we encourage you to bring a notebook, sketchbook or a devise to document any observations. Following the walk, for those interested we will head to the nearest pub based on wherever we end up, to compare observations (making our own disoriented map) over a well earned cold one.
Please note: we will be on foot, and we will be persevering regardless of the weather. As we will be walking in a randomised direction, please note that we will likely not end up in the same location as we start (so please plan your transport accordingly).
We understand that this kind of group activity might not be for everyone. While we encourage the sharing of observations as we walk (as was the original goal of the group-dérive), there is no pressure to join in, if you would prefer to participate more passively.
Location: meet at state library lawn by the Joan of Arc statue (out the front of the main entrance, closer to the side of QV). We will then finish up at the nearest pub or bar (to be discovered).
𝑊𝑒 𝑤𝑜𝑢𝑙𝑑 𝑙𝑖𝑘𝑒 𝑡𝑜 𝑎𝑐𝑘𝑛𝑜𝑤𝑙𝑒𝑑𝑔𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑑𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑤𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑤𝑎𝑦𝑠 𝑜𝑛 𝑤ℎ𝑖𝑐ℎ 𝑤𝑒 𝑚𝑒𝑒𝑡, 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝐵𝑜𝑜𝑛 𝑊𝑢𝑟𝑟𝑢𝑛𝑔 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑊𝑜𝑖𝑤𝑢𝑟𝑟𝑢𝑛𝑔 𝑝𝑒𝑜𝑝𝑙𝑒𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝐾𝑢𝑙𝑖𝑛 𝑁𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛. 𝑊𝑒 𝑝𝑎𝑦 𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑝𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑠 𝑡𝑜 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑒𝑙𝑑𝑒𝑟𝑠, 𝑝𝑎𝑠𝑡 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑒𝑛𝑡. 𝑊𝑒 𝑎𝑐𝑘𝑛𝑜𝑤𝑙𝑒𝑑𝑔𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑙𝑎𝑛𝑑, 𝑜𝑓 𝑤ℎ𝑖𝑐ℎ 𝑤𝑒 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑏𝑒𝑛𝑒𝑓𝑖𝑐𝑖𝑎𝑟𝑖𝑒𝑠, 𝑤𝑎𝑠 𝑛𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟 𝑐𝑒𝑑𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑤𝑒 𝑒𝑛𝑑𝑒𝑣𝑜𝑟 𝑡𝑜 𝑟𝑒𝑓𝑙𝑒𝑐𝑡 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑡𝑎𝑘𝑒 𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 𝑜𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑟𝑜𝑢𝑔ℎ𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑝𝑟𝑎𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑐𝑒.