MergEmerge offers an alternative to habitual styles of thinking, encouraging the integration of things that are distinct and dissimilar.
52 intriguing images, 52 unique texts
Combine cards in an open-ended solution to the question of narrative-making.
Use a single card or a pair as focus for meditation, sparks of inspiration.
The cards arrived yesterday. What a great surprise, and how especially well-timed to interrupt our rather limited and repetitive lives... We had a great time using them last night after dinner. I appreciated how we sometimes engaged in storytelling, and other times in more philosophical reflection. We mostly worked with pairs of cards, but Isaac made his way to linking four. We look forward to further exploration. HF
I was startled by the first card I picked up:
You were my mother; I was your daughter.
We were a pair.
I am reading Toni Morrison's Beloved and, just this morning, had gotten to the part where the mother and daughter are addressing one another in a similar way. I love how that synchronicity can happen. JM
One evening, I decided to play MergEmerge
with my seven-year-old. On the one hand,
it was a ridiculous idea--this game of aesthetics
and poetics, of logic and illogic, with a seven-
year-old? On the other hand, who better?
He got it right away, and immediately
wove together ideas, feelings, images,
and associations in ways that delighted
and surprised me. ES
I picked out two cards, went in to my studio
and improvised my dance to the words
and picture connections. It kind of reminds me of using the I Ching many years ago....AK
Our campfire night got rained out, so we did the storytelling with your cards around a table in the family room. The ages were 4 years to 10 years and I really wasn't sure how it would go. Bottom line - it was fantastic!! I finally had to call the "game" to a halt so they could get to bed.
We started by having each one take a card and then tell the group what they saw in the card. Everyone had something to say, even with the abstract art. In fact, the 4 year old saw a subway door in one of the abstracts and as soon as she said it, I saw it too. I considered that the warm up. Then we had each one take a card and, beginning with the oldest who started the story, each in descending age had a minute to add to the story based on their card. The imaginations took hold and we had a lively telling of tales. When that ended, one of them wanted to each tell their separate story from their own card. That also went well. Finally, the 4 year old wanted us to do the continuing story with the youngest starting, which we did. From then on, individuals began picking up cards and simply telling stories based on what they saw. I will tell you, that the headless statue was a big hit with the boys. LZ