Finding Common Ground: David Deighton on the Art of Talking to Strangers
RSS Feed Catherine Llewellyn welcomes David Deighton, creator of Triptych Dialogue, an art experiment exploring how we can bridge societal divides by changing the way we talk to one another. David's work brings people together in person, often around difficult subjects such as politics, using art, active listening and the senses to create deeper connection.
David shares how his understanding of impermanence developed through years of meditation and study, including time spent at a monastery in India with a Burmese monk. He describes his practice of using rocks as reminders of impermanence, suffering and connection, and how these ideas became part of his artistic work.
They explore the origins of Triptych Dialogue, including an encounter with a medieval triptych at the Victoria and Albert Museum. David explains how the missing parts of the artwork prompted him to think about what is absent from our conversations, and how this led him to begin speaking with strangers about politics.
David describes his approach to these encounters, asking three questions, listening without debating and looking for the emotional common ground beneath political differences. He explains how these short conversations can transform both participants, and how his own anger and sense of division have changed through the practice.
#Impermanence #Connection #ActiveListening
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Where our conversation went:
02:00 David's relationship with impermanence and why it keeps returning as a reminder
04:25 The rock that became a daily reminder of impermanence, suffering and connection
07:05 How the rock represents change, transformation and the interconnectedness of everything
09:30 Walking meditation, carrying rocks and the practice of letting them go
10:45 Impermanence as a metaphor for existence, renewal and our relationships
11:37 David's years of study and his journey to a monastery in India
13:40 Theravada Buddhism, meditation and learning through presence and all the senses
15:30 Bringing this sensory awareness into David's artwork
16:17 Exploring how to create deeper connection with a stranger in less than five minutes
16:29 Talking to strangers about politics and the origins of Triptych Dialogue
20:43 The medieval triptych at the Victoria and Albert Museum that inspired the project
21:27 What is missing from the artwork, and what is missing from our conversations
22:55 Three questions as the three panels of the triptych
23:32 Responding to societal division and turning from political expression towards face to face exchange
25:23 Using all the senses to experience another person's words and perspective
26:05 Finding commonality with people whose values and political views may seem completely opposed
27:05 Discovering emotional connection beneath political disagreement
28:25 How natural environments create space for openness, curiosity and connection
29:04 Moments of genuine human connection in an age of digital division
30:56 How these encounters have changed David
31:50 The three questions and the importance of listening without debating
33:00 Exploring people's feelings about the current state of US politics
33:22 The third question, finishing the sentence about politics in the United States
34:35 Finding a single word that captures what someone has expressed
35:03 What happens after the microphone is turned off
35:41 How people's feelings can change during the course of a single day
36:19 Active listening, presence and David's daily grounding practice
37:42 The project as an ongoing exploration of connection and transformation
38:56 Ceramic vessels, impermanence and preserving questions for the future
40:20 David's new website and continuing to share the project
40:57 Conversations in natural places and learning from others
42:12 Connecting through all the senses and moments of silence with strangers
43:15 Following the project online and hearing the conversations for yourself
44:52 Human connection as a form of political action
46:02 David's message to people following their own calling: keep going, everything is impermanent
46:53 Dropping the phone and talking to a stranger
47:35 The value of vulnerability, connection and allowing ourselves to be transformed
48:14 Rethinking the advice to not talk to strangers
#podmatch #Impermanence #ActiveListening #HumanConnection
Where to find David Deighton:
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