Losing Ourselves Together: A Talk on Losing and Finding Ourselves in Art

Saturday, December 5 | 1:00–2:15 p.m. | GlasSalon

Doors open at 12:30 p.m.

dharma /ˈdär-mə/ noun
: the way things are; the way the world works; the nature or order of things.

Artist and teacher Rosalyn Driscoll explores the connections between art, mindfulness, and contemplative practice, drawing on Buddhist teachings and her work with Dharma and the Arts. What happens when we approach art as an experience rather than an object, and learn to look both inward and outward with greater awareness? Driscoll considers how cultivating attention to our inner and outer experiences can transform our relationship with art and ourselves.

In Buddhist practice, Dharma refers to the teachings of the Buddha, as well as the way things are and the way the world works. Driscoll reflects on the intimate relationship between our sense of self and our perception, inviting us to reconsider how we experience art and understand ourselves. In connection with Bobby Anspach’s Losing Ourselves Together: The Art of Bobby Anspach, these ideas open up a larger question: What does it mean to “lose ourselves together”?

Joseph Goldstein, cofounder of the Insight Meditation Society and author of A Heart Full of Peace, will join Driscoll virtually for a portion of the talk, bringing his decades of experience with meditation and Buddhist practice to the conversation.

Whether you are an artist seeking a more mindful approach to your creative practice or simply curious about the connections between art, attention, and spiritual life, this conversation offers an invitation to slow down and look inward, outward, and more closely.

Before attending the conversation, we encourage visitors to experience the exhibition for themselves. Losing Ourselves Together: The Art of Bobby Anspach is a timed, immersive experience that invites you to slow down, look closely, and consider how you are experiencing the work. This exhibition requires a timed ticket for entry. Due to limited space, program registration does not include entry into the exhibition. To see the exhibition, reserve your free exhibition ticket here. Please note that this exhibition includes flashing lights, sound elements, and enclosed spaces.

If you need accommodations, assistance, or appropriate modifications to fully participate in this event, please let us know by contacting Access Initiatives at [email protected]. Please note that while we endeavor to provide everyone with a positive visitor experience, last-minute requests may not be accommodated; we ask for requests to be made, at minimum, three days prior to the event. Thank you.

If you've registered but can no longer attend, kindly notify the museum as soon as possible so we can accommodate others. You can contact us by phone at 419.255.8000 or by email at [email protected].


Speaker Bios

Rosalyn Driscoll is a visual artist whose work spans sculpture, installation, photography, papermaking, and drawing, exploring the body, sensory perception, and natural forces. Her decade of research into tactile and haptic sculpture is documented in her book, The Sensing Body in the Visual Arts: Making and Experiencing Sculpture (Bloomsbury, 2020). Driscoll developed and teaches the Dharma and the Arts program at the Barre Center for Buddhist Studies. Her work has been exhibited widely throughout the United States, Europe, and Asia, and she has received fellowships from the Massachusetts Cultural Council and the New England Foundation for the Arts, as well as residencies at Djerassi, the Helene Wurlitzer Foundation of New Mexico, Dartington Hall Trust in the United Kingdom, and L’AiR Arts in Paris.

You can read more about Driscoll’s ideas here.

Joseph Goldstein is a meditation teacher and author who has led insight and lovingkindness meditation retreats worldwide since 1974. He is a cofounder and guiding teacher of the Insight Meditation Society in Barre, Massachusetts, and helped establish the Barre Center for Buddhist Studies and The Forest Refuge. Goldstein has studied and practiced Buddhist meditation since 1967 and is the author of A Heart Full of Peace, Mindfulness: A Practical Guide to Awakening, One Dharma, and several other books on meditation and Buddhist practice.