An architect and founder of, Kushner guides readers through the innovative experimentation within the world’s most exciting structures. Why might a lifelong traveler like Iyer, who has journeyed from Easter Island to Kathmandu, think that sitting quietly in a room might be the ultimate adventure? In The Art of Stillness Iyer reveals there’s never been a greater need to slow down, tune out, and give ourselves permission to be still. In The Art of Stillness: Adventures in Going Nowhere, travel writer Pico Iyer considers the unexpected rewards of staying put and reveals a counterintuitive truth: The more ways we have to connect, the more we seem desperate to unplug. Three smart, playful, original TED books from a leading architect, designer, and writer in one collection-The Art of Stillness, The Future of Architecture in 100 Buildings, and Judge This-inspire a more creative life. This lyrical and inspiring book expands on a new idea, offering a way forward for all those feeling affected by the frenetic pace of our modern world.Īuthor : Pico Iyer,Marc Kushner,Chip Kidd In 2013, Pico Iyer gave a blockbuster TED Talk. Ultimately, Iyer shows that, in this age of constant movement and connectedness, perhaps staying in one place is a more exciting prospect, and a greater necessity than ever before. The Art of Stillness paints a picture of why so many-from Marcel Proust to Mahatma Gandhi to Emily Dickinson-have found richness in stillness. Growing trends like observing an “Internet Sabbath”-turning off online connections from Friday night to Monday morning-highlight how increasingly desperate many of us are to unplug and bring stillness into our lives. These aren't New Age fads so much as ways to rediscover the wisdom of an earlier age. He reflects that this is perhaps the reason why many people-even those with no religious commitment-seem to be turning to yoga, or meditation, or seeking silent retreats. Iyer also draws on his own experiences as a travel writer to explore why advances in technology are making us more likely to retreat. In The Art of Stillness-a TED Books release-Iyer investigate the lives of people who have made a life seeking stillness: from Matthieu Ricard, a Frenchman with a PhD in molecular biology who left a promising scientific career to become a Tibetan monk, to revered singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen, who traded the pleasures of the senses for several years of living the near-silent life of meditation as a Zen monk. There’s never been a greater need to slow down, tune out and give ourselves permission to be still. Why might a lifelong traveler like Pico Iyer, who has journeyed from Easter Island to Ethiopia, Cuba to Kathmandu, think that sitting quietly in a room might be the ultimate adventure? Because in our madly accelerating world, our lives are crowded, chaotic and noisy. In The Art of Stillness in a Noisy World, meditation and yoga expert, Magnus Fridh, will help you find the calmness amidst the stresses of everyday life, helping you to become more present in a world where we seem to becoming ever more absent.Ī follow up to Pico Iyer’s essay “The Joy of Quiet,” The Art of Stillness considers the unexpected adventure of staying put and reveals a counterintuitive truth: The more ways we have to connect, the more we seem desperate to unplug. Simply sitting in silence every once in a while, without moving, doing nothing, might just be the smartest choice you make in the world we live in. What’s more, this also makes us more present and able to devote our energy to the things that are important in life. Spending more time surrounded by calmness, resting and recovering, gives us the space to really process experiences, make sense of what we’re feeling, and put a good distance between us and all the things on our to do list. When life is moving at a breakneck pace or when at times we’re confronted with almost unreasonable demands clogging up our calendars, it can seem as if we have no time left to simply do nothing. The Art of Stillness is a lively, critical study of one of the most important and uncompromising figures in contemporary world theater. He examines Suzuki's collaborators, the importance of architecture and environment in his theater and his impact on performance all over the world. Paul Allain, an experienced practitioner of the Suzuki method, re-evaluates Suzuki's work, giving a lucid overview of his development towards an international theater aesthetic. An intergral part of his work has been the development and teaching of his rigorous and controversial training system, the Suzuki method, whose principles have also been highly influential in contemporary theater. For over forty years, Tadashi Suzuki has been a unique and vital force in both Japanese and Western theater, creating and directing many internationally acclaimed productions including his famous production of The Trojan Women, which subsequently toured around the world.