The Wonderlogues

The Wonderlogues are a series of dinner/dialogue events which encourage the sharing of knowledge, ideas, skills, intrigues, perspectives, observations and fascinations about nature across disciplines and cultures. In this way, we hope to find new ways to look again at how we understand everyday aspects of nature and the world around us.

A topic is selected for each gathering, and everyone is invited to come and share their thoughts in some way, on that topic. Past events have included artists, farmers, teachers, astronomers, philosophers, physicists, lepidopterists, stilt-walkers, ornithologists, writers, designers, cooks and orchardists, and we’d like to add you to our network!

The format is to bring-a-plate-and-a-wonder. Please see this link for more information on the general format for these events. More specific times/schedules will be given per event.

 

Join us for our next event…

The next Wonderlogue event is being formulated as a follow-up discussion to the ‘Energy & Adaptation’ event held in November. Please consider  joining us for a time of reflection on scientific and cultural perspectives on time, the formation of the earth and of life. House of Wonder invites Geologists, Physicists, Philosophers, Ecologists, Biologists, Anthropologists, Astronomers, Artists and  representatives from many cultural perspectives to join for a roving discussion on deep time.

Morning tea and introductions will be followed by A Walk Through Deep Time – a short walk on the farm property through the deep time of the earth’s formation, to discuss deep time, energy, and the ongoing development of life.

All are welcome. To receive updates, select one of the below options, and more information will be available shortly on this event.

 

Want updates on the upcoming dinner events?

Ways to keep in touch:
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Dinners — Past

 

Deep Time: Energy & Adaptation – November 2011

Geologist Alistair Brickell shares his wonder at the ancient creatures found at the Burgess Shales site.

This day was spent as a reflection on connections between energy and adaptation, with House of Wonder having the great honor of hosting a wide variety of perspectives and knowledges. Geologists, Physicists, Philosophers, Ecologists, Anthropologists, Astronomers, Artists, local people and all were invited and joined for ‘A Walk Through Deep Time’ – a short walk on the farm property through the deep time of the earth’s formation, to discuss the energy exchanges involved in the evolution of life.
See project information…     See notes from the event…

 

Open Time: how might we open up time? – September 2011

An image of the space-time warp effect on planet mercury's orbit as it goes behind the sun in relation to the earth.

Einstein thought that the time at your head, was faster than the time at your feet – that all time is relative. The chronological time of our clocks today are a socio-political construct of convenience, but there are many ways to think about time. To discuss this mind-bending topic, a simultaneous dinner/breakfast was held between New Zealand and Denmark, where Physicists, Philosophers, Hackers, Thinkers and Tinkers, Astronomers and Artists were asked to come with your time-hacking thoughts, ideas, or projects to share. Workshops held prior in both countries were discussed at the dinner.
See event announcment…
     See notes from the event…

 

Atmospherics & the ExperientialJune 2011

A meteorological rendering of the paths taken by the air breathed the night of the event, in the six hours prior.

What do we know of the interconnectedness of ocean and atmosphere? How much can we come to know from observation and the physical sensing of our environment? For this dinner we welcomed the visiting US artist Andrea Polli, whose work has included the sonification of major atmospheric phenomena such as hurricanes and climate change in the work Atmospherics, and research into scientific vs. experiential understanding of weather data in the Ground Truth video series.
See event announcement…
    See notes from the event…

 

A Dinner for a Lepidopterist: Energy as OrientationMay 2011

Above: At dinner, Jim Byrt, Paul Moss, Keith Woodley, Annie Wilson, Sean Wilson, Ruth Irwin, Maria Heidemann, Trudy Lane. (By disciplinary descriptors: Animator, Lepidopterist, Amateur Astronomer, Shorebird Centre Manager, Orchardist, Engineer, Philosopher, Stiltwalker, Artist/Curator)

Migrating shorebird researchers, moths and butterfly experts, philosophers, astronomers, orchardists and cooks… what might these knowledge areas have in common? If the moon guides the moth, and electromagnetics the globe travelling godwit/kuaka shorebird, then how might knowledge of cosmologies – both maori and european – in turn guide these understandings? Over a shared hearty winter meal, the Keeper of the House explores the many possible interconnections between the work of her guests.
See event announcement…
    See notes from the event…