I ❤ my own place – Nadya Sayapina

Postcard made by a participant of the I love my own place workshop, Stuttgart, 2024 // photo courtesy of the artist

I ❤ my own place, 2022 – 2024

workshop series, participatory residency project

I ❤ my own place is a part of the long-term Letter to mom project, which explores the stories of individuals forced to flee their homes due to political persecution or war. It addressing the category of place in the migrant experience, memory, national identity, multiculturality, and adaptation. This practice focused on reclaiming a lost sense of home in a new place, reconnecting with memories and traditions, and defining the characteristics of a resource place.

Started as a research within the framework of the Art Prospect residence in Berlin (2022) by CEC Artslink in partnership with Ambasada Kultury, it expanded to a series of ongoing workshops for people with migration experience.

During the art residence the artist asked her friends who have been forced to migrate to send the geo-coordinates of a place in the city that they find meaningful, resourceful, pleasant and comfortable, a place they want to return to and to share with others. The author visited the locations, captured them in watercolor sketches and fixed them with tags from the participants. The project was shown as an Instagram account @i_love_my_own_spot.

I love my own place series, Berlin, 2022 // photo courtesy of the artist

The project was presented at the Day of Dignity in Berlin on August 9, 2022 in a form of workshop I ❤️ my own Berlin / Non-tourist Souvenirs. The workshop participants discovered and gave each other places, words and emotions in the form of handmade souvenirs that keep a “different” memory of relocation, adaptation, exploration, and appropriation of urban space.

I love my own Berlin / Non-tourist Souvenirs workshop, Berlin, 2022 // photo courtesy of the artist

Later I ❤ my own place developed into a series od workshops, addressing the category of place in the migrant experience, memory, associative thinking, and self-reflection. This practice focused on reclaiming a lost sense of home in a new place, reconnecting with memories and traditions, and defining the characteristics of a resource place. Participants worked with writing, photographic archives, painting, collage, and calligram techniques. These workshops took place in Berlin (2022), Vilnius, Poznań, and Stuttgart (2024).