BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//New York Institute for Gestalt Therapy - ECPv6.15.11//NONSGML v1.0//EN CALSCALE:GREGORIAN METHOD:PUBLISH X-ORIGINAL-URL:https://newyorkgestalt.org X-WR-CALDESC:Events for New York Institute for Gestalt Therapy REFRESH-INTERVAL;VALUE=DURATION:PT1H X-Robots-Tag:noindex X-PUBLISHED-TTL:PT1H BEGIN:VTIMEZONE TZID:America/New_York BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20220313T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20221106T060000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20230312T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20231105T060000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20240310T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20241103T060000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20250309T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20251102T060000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20260308T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20261101T060000 END:STANDARD END:VTIMEZONE BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250928T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250928T150000 DTSTAMP:20260407T005348 CREATED:20250806T221547Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250806T221547Z UID:4492-1759064400-1759071600@newyorkgestalt.org SUMMARY:2025-2026 Business Meeting #1 DESCRIPTION: URL:https://newyorkgestalt.org/event/2025-2026-business-meeting-1/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Business Meeting ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://newyorkgestalt.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/biz_meeting_bkgrnd1_light.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250720T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250720T150000 DTSTAMP:20260407T005348 CREATED:20250707T221958Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250708T022129Z UID:4090-1753016400-1753023600@newyorkgestalt.org SUMMARY:Six Months of Trump DESCRIPTION:Description:\n \nDisbelief about his election. Dread after his inauguration. Despair about all that has been crushed during his first six months.\n \nOn Sunday\, July 20\, we will gather again on the safe ground of our special meeting to speak with one another about this chaos and find support in our community.\n \nPlease join us.\n \nFacilitated by Dan Bloom.\n \nIllustration by Craig Stephens. URL:https://newyorkgestalt.org/event/six-months-of-trump/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Special Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://newyorkgestalt.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Turmp_on_a_bulldozer_CraigStephens.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250608T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250608T150000 DTSTAMP:20260407T005349 CREATED:20240805T194303Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250109T234239Z UID:2759-1749387600-1749394800@newyorkgestalt.org SUMMARY:2024-2025 Business Meeting #3 DESCRIPTION: URL:https://newyorkgestalt.org/event/2024-2025-business-meeting-3/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Business Meeting ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://newyorkgestalt.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/biz_meeting_bkgrnd1_light.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250601T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250601T130000 DTSTAMP:20260407T005349 CREATED:20250516T145558Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250516T182302Z UID:3800-1748782800-1748782800@newyorkgestalt.org SUMMARY:100 Days of Trump DESCRIPTION:Description:\n \nOne hundred days. And counting.\n \nHow are we managing? As therapists? As human beings? As citizens? As a community?\n \nOn Sunday\, June 1\, we will gather once again to share and discuss our lives in this new world order.\n \nThis meeting is an open space for us to be together.\n \nFacilitated by Frank Bosco.\n \nIllustration by Craig Stephens. URL:https://newyorkgestalt.org/event/100-days-of-trump/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Special Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://newyorkgestalt.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Trump_breaking_world_peace_Craig_Stephens_illustration.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250504T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250504T150000 DTSTAMP:20260407T005349 CREATED:20240804T224108Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250505T002633Z UID:2706-1746363600-1746370800@newyorkgestalt.org SUMMARY:The Artist of Life DESCRIPTION:Presenter: Peter PhilippsonDescription: \nPHG called the self the “Artist of Life” and identified self with acts of creativity in the field rather than as a pre-existing author of creative action. In this workshop\, I want to explore this very radical notion both theoretically and experientially. I want to highlight both the beauty that we as human beings can bring to the world\, and the destructiveness and environmental impact of our sense that the world is our artistic canvas to be remade at will. \nLearning Objectives: Participants completing this workshop will be able to 1) describe the artistry and creativity implicit in our theory of self as field-emergent; 2) identify the dangers inherent in our artistry and creativity as a species; and 3) experience how they form and act in groups as creative process.Biography: \nPeter Philippson\, MSc (Gestalt psychotherapy)\, is a UKCP registered Gestalt psychotherapist and trainer\, a Teaching and Supervising Member of the Gestalt Psychotherapy & Training Institute UK\, a founder member of Manchester Gestalt Centre\, a Full Member of the New York Institute for Gestalt Therapy\, a Senior Trainer for GiTa (Slovenia)\, a faculty member at IPsiG (Turin)\, an advisory board member for the Center for Somatic Studies\, a founder member of IG-FEST\, and a guest trainer for many training programs internationally. He has been working as a psychotherapist for 35 years. He is also a past president of the Association for the Advancement of Gestalt Therapy. Peter is the author of Self in Relation (Gestalt Journal Press)\, The Emergent Self (Karnac/UKCP)\, Gestalt Therapy: Roots and Branches (Karnac)\, and many chapters and articles. He is a teacher (4th dan) and student of traditional aikido. URL:https://newyorkgestalt.org/event/the-artist-of-life/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Presentation ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://newyorkgestalt.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Philippson_artist_of_life_1920x1080.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250406T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250406T150000 DTSTAMP:20260407T005349 CREATED:20240804T042737Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250403T030855Z UID:2698-1743944400-1743951600@newyorkgestalt.org SUMMARY:Social Class in the Consulting Room DESCRIPTION:Register\n \n \n \n \n \n \n Register here\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Please enable JavaScript in your browser to complete this form.Please enable JavaScript in your browser to complete this form.Name *FirstLastEmail *I am a *NYIGT MemberGuestMy location *How did you find out about this event? *What interests you about this event? * \n you I about\n \n \n Comment or messageSubmit \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Presenters: Susan Gregory\, Iona Burnell Reilly\, Joëlle GartnerDescription: \nAmong the many DEI (diversity\, equity\, and inclusion) particularities\, social class is rarely mentioned\, yet it is an essential aspect of who we are in every interaction\, including as therapists\, and who each client is when they come to therapy seeking relief from their suffering. Class is always in the field yet rarely referred to. In this didactic and experiential workshop\, we will bring the experiences of class to the foreground together. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Biographies: \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Susan Gregory\n \n Susan Gregory\, a senior member of the New York Institute for Gestalt Therapy\, is in private practice in New York City and New Paltz\, NY. She is one of the past presidents of the Institute and has taught at conferences and as guest faculty worldwide. Among her 25 published papers and book chapters is “Encouragement and Perseverance: Lives of Some Working-Class Artists” (Clio’s Psyche\, 2011). In addition to practicing Gestalt therapy\, Susan teaches singing and the Gindler approach to breath and body work.www.GestaltSing.org \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Iona Burnell Reilly \n \n \nIona Burnell Reilly is an academic at the University of East London in the UK. Her lecturing and research focuses on social class inequalities. She is also a Gestalt therapist in private practice in London\, registered with the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy. She has several publications on the topic of social class inequalities in higher education\, including “Tales of the unexpected: The lives and experiences of working-class academics” (Higher Education Quarterly\, 2024\, Vol. 78\, Issue 3\, 1190–1201). \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Joëlle Gartner\n \n \nA Gestalt practitioner since 1998\, and a psychotherapist\, trainer\, and clinical supervisor in private practice\, Joëlle Gartner has a lifelong background as a teacher\, trade unionist\, and political and community activist. Born and educated in France\, she has lived and worked since 1975 in a working-class area of Belfast\, then under British military occupation – hence her long experience in working with the legacy of colonization and conflict in her practice. She is also the co-director of the Gestalt Centre Belfast\, which delivers high-quality\, low-cost Gestalt training to people who work in the helping professions in a low-wage economy and in the middle of a peace process. Joëlle convenes the IAAGT Social Class interest group. Her relevant publications include “Social class and Gestalt therapy: are we blind?” (British Gestalt Journal\, 2023\, Vol. 32\, Issue 1\, 21–31). URL:https://newyorkgestalt.org/event/social-class-in-the-consulting-room/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Presentation ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://newyorkgestalt.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Gregory_social_ladders_concept_1920x1080.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="Susan Gregory%2C Iona Burnell Reilly%2C Jo%C3%ABlle Gartner":MAILTO:gestaltsing@aol.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250330T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250330T150000 DTSTAMP:20260407T005349 CREATED:20250305T053730Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250321T002036Z UID:3576-1743339600-1743346800@newyorkgestalt.org SUMMARY:In the Path of the Wrecking Ball: Two Months of Trump’s Presidency DESCRIPTION:In the Path of the Wrecking Ball: Two Months of Trump’s Presidency\nThe past two months seem like an eternity. The ascension of Trump and his MAGA loyalists continues to shake the foundations of our world. \nOn Sunday\, March 30\, we will gather once again as citizens in the path of the wrecking ball. \nThe NYIGT offers this open place for us to be together. Everyone is invited. \nFacilitated by Dan Bloom. \n  URL:https://newyorkgestalt.org/event/in-the-path-of-the-wrecking-ball-two-months-of-trumps-presidency-march-30-2025/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Special Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://newyorkgestalt.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/Trump_as_a_wreckingball.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250323T100000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250323T120000 DTSTAMP:20260407T005349 CREATED:20250225T022506Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250305T145839Z UID:3491-1742724000-1742731200@newyorkgestalt.org SUMMARY:Forming Form: How Movement Shapes a Psychotherapist’s Practical Knowledge: Symposium with Helena Kallner DESCRIPTION:Special Meeting for Members and Guests\nOnline Symposium with Helena Kallner\nThis is the first of what we hope will be special meetings to honor the achievement of our members by discussing their work. \nHelena’s contribution to Gestalt therapy pushes at the boundaries of our contemporary approach and discovers new\, exciting\, and practical ways to develop further our clinical phenomenology. \nIn this meeting\, Helena Kallner will lead a discussion of her research by presenting her thesis for which she was just awarded her PhD.  This is her description of it: \nMy work explores how movement shapes experience and knowing\, challenging the dominance of abstract and quantifiable knowledge in our culture. \nI argue that bodily knowing is central to psychotherapy and propose holding as a key professional skill – a pactive\, or receptive and responsive movement that guides therapeutic action. \nA core theme throughout is verbalizing lived bodily experience\, with an emphasis on grounding phronesis and bodily knowledge in well-defined concepts. \nPeople are encouraged to read sections of her dissertation prior to the meeting. \nHer complete dissertation and abstract can be downloaded here: \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Download the complete dissertation\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Download the abstract\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Reading suggestions to prepare for the meeting\nFor a quick overview: \n\nAbstract\nAims & Research Questions (pp. 40-43)\nStructure of the Dissertation (pp. 43-45)\n\nFor a summary\, read the end-of-chapter summaries or: \n\nFindings and Concluding Reflections (pp. 323–365)\n\nFor a more detailed exploration of phronesis: \n\nChapter 6: Holding as Phronesis (pp. 223–276)\nChapter 7: Holding as Movement (pp. 277–322)\n\nFor an overview of Helena’s method: \n\nResearching Practical Knowledge (pp. 71-74)\nMethods of Gathering Data (pp. 77-78)\n\nMembers and their guests can contact Dan Bloom (president@nyigt.org)  with questions and to get the link to the symposium. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Register here\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Please enable JavaScript in your browser to complete this form.Please enable JavaScript in your browser to complete this form.Name *FirstLastEmail * \n am a My\n \n \n I am a *NYIGT MemberGuestMy location *Comment or MessageSubmit URL:https://newyorkgestalt.org/event/forming-form-how-movement-shapes-psychotherapists-practical-knowledge-symposium-with-helena-kallner/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Online Symposium ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://newyorkgestalt.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/03-23-25_FindingForm.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250316T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250316T150000 DTSTAMP:20260407T005349 CREATED:20240804T224055Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250305T144928Z UID:2693-1742130000-1742137200@newyorkgestalt.org SUMMARY:Adolescence\, Anger\, and the Arts DESCRIPTION:Presenter: Jon Blend \nDescription: \nAdolescent anger \nIn adolescence\, anger is associated with particular functional aspects (McConville\, 1995). It protects young teenagers who lack the capacity to reconcile contradictory attitudes and beliefs\, which may otherwise leave them feeling overwhelmed. This occurs during a time of much vulnerability\, while the massive project of rewiring neural pathways takes place within teenage brains. To avoid implosion under the strain\, young adolescents tend to skew their version of reality to support their fragile selves. Through projecting inner conflicts onto the wider field of family\, friends\, or community\, troublesome internal conflicts are kept at bay. \nAdolescent anger enables proto separation at the disembedding stage \nThe behavior of young adolescents aims to create a boundary between them and adults; teenagers may provoke fights with adults to feel powerful while secretly feeling insecure. Anger and projection serve to keep guilt and shame at bay – the developing teenage brain as yet cannot handle personal inconsistency and isn’t ready to respond empathically. Instead\, the youngster first needs to attend to their own needs despite the risk of seeming selfish. Some psychologists\, such as Michael Gurian\, question the imperative for teenage rebellion. Many psychotherapists\, however\, including McConville\, Oaklander\, and Winnicott\, consider such rebellion a necessary part of the process of growth and development. Battles fought at the boundary between self and other keep the pressure off the still fragile\, internal self\, though the teenager’s experience of this divide\, especially in the middle “interiority” stage\, can also be painful and lonely. \nOther functional aspects of anger in adolescence \nAnger also provides a sense of personal solidity for adolescents while supplying propulsion for them to “blast off” on their own. This allows an experience of brief separation from parents while showing peers and others that they are okay. Otherwise\, adolescents risk remaining confluent with their parents and unable to leave the family. Anger becomes a creative adjustment\, driving adolescence forward as the young person begins to consolidate their renewed self (ibid). This process “shakes up the herd” and can be found variously across the animal kingdom. \nDuring this presentation: \nWe will examine some of the arts-led media that adolescents turn to for support during this amazing period of accelerated growth and change. These include iconic songs across eras\, poetry writing\, fashion\, and “the language of cool.” How might these support a process of development? Clinical vignettes from therapy illustrate moments of adolescent “life in the fast lane” as well as relational experiences of “doldrums.” Quests for identity\, autonomy\, morality\, and intimacy form part of this heady journey – how does anger expression and containment encourage or impede our completion of gestalts – our flow? \nWorking in breakout rooms\, participants may wish to explore present awareness by assembling their own cut-and-paste lyric or poem using phrases gathered from newspapers or magazines – a quirky method for inspiration during writer’s block adopted by Bowie\, Dylan\, Lennon\, Radiohead\, and Swift. \nAlternatively\, the group may wish to experiment with a simplified version of violinist Helen Bonny’s transformational Guided Imagery and Music (GIM) method\, exploring with awareness emergent feelings\, images\, and memories while relaxing to carefully tailored musical extracts. How might this affect our acknowledgement of the ebb and flow of adolescent processes within us? \nBiography: \nJon Blend\, MA\, is British\, of Austro-Russian heritage. He is a UKCP and ECP registered Gestalt psychotherapist\, child psychotherapist\, clinical supervisor\, musician\, and Playback Theatre performer (www.londonplayback.com). He maintains a psychotherapy practice in London seeing adults\, children\, and supervisees. \nJon is a faculty member of the Institute for Arts in Therapy and Education and an approved trainer with the Violet Solomon Oaklander Foundation. Since 2002\, he has taught the Oaklander model of projective arts therapy to psychotherapists and other professionals. His career in adult and child mental health began 40 years ago\, as a social worker in various hospital and community-based settings. \nJon has delivered Gestalt training workshops and presentations to institutes and organizations in Bulgaria\, Croatia\, Georgia\, Poland\, Romania\, the USA\, and the UK. His interests include animal-assisted therapies\, interfaith working\, and transcultural and intergenerational dialogue. For nine articles and training information\, visit https://www.gacp.co.uk. URL:https://newyorkgestalt.org/event/adolescence-anger-and-the-arts/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Presentation ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://newyorkgestalt.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Blend_Adolescence_Anger_Arts_1920x1080_light.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="Jon Blend":MAILTO:nyigtevents@gmail.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250302T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250302T150000 DTSTAMP:20260407T005349 CREATED:20240804T224047Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250109T234404Z UID:2688-1740920400-1740927600@newyorkgestalt.org SUMMARY:Field Perspective in Gestalt Therapy and Contemporary Clinical Issues DESCRIPTION:Presenters: Gianni Francesetti\, Michela Gecele\, and Jan Roubal \nDescription: \nField perspective is receiving a growing interest in psychotherapy and psychoanalysis\, and there are many different ways to understand it. In this meeting\, we will share our understanding of field theory in our practice\, and how the therapeutic process is a field phenomenon. In this perspective\, the change is not produced by an intervention of the therapist on the client\, nor by a process of collaboration between therapist and client in order to co-create the change. The process of change is rather made by the forces already active in the field and the therapist modulates their presence in order for transformations to happen. We will question why there is now an increasing interest in field perspective in clinical work and how it is related to the changes in contemporary clinical suffering. Starting from this background\, we will discuss what therapy should focus on today and which kind of support is needed in our work. \n  \n \nBiographies: \nGianni Francesetti\, MD\, psychiatrist and Gestalt therapist\, is an adjunct professor of phenomenological and existential approach in the Department of Psychology\, University of Torino (Italy)\, and an international trainer and supervisor\, who has published widely on psychotherapy and psychopathology. He is the co-director of the IPsiG – International Institute for Gestalt Therapy and Psychopathology (www.ipsig.it) and of the Turin School of Psychopathology. He is the president of Poiesis – Gestalt Therapy Clinical Centre of Torino and the past president of the European Association for Gestalt Therapy (EAGT) and of the Italian Federation of Psychotherapy Associations (FIAP) as well as the co-founder of IG-FEST. His last two books are Phenomenological-Gestalt Psychopathology: A Light Introduction (l’Exprimerie\, Bordeaux\, 2022) and (co-edited with T. Griffero) Psicopatologia e Atmosfere. Prima del soggetto e del mondo (Fioriti\, 2022; first English edition\, Psychopathology and Atmospheres. Neither Inside nor Outside\, Cambridge Scholars Publishing\, 2019). He is the co-director of the book series Prospettive psicopatologiche e psicoterapia della Gestalt (Fioriti) and of Field Perspectives and Clinical Practice: Gestalt Therapy Series Books (Routledge). \nMichela Gecele\, MD\, a psychiatrist and Gestalt therapist\, trained in cultural anthropology. An international trainer and supervisor\, she has published books\, articles\, and chapters on themes of psychotherapy and psychopathology\, exploring clinical suffering from a phenomenological and Gestalt therapy viewpoint. Another clinical and research topic is that of cultural and intercultural issues (risks\, opportunities\, trauma and post-trauma\, language\, communication\, and connections between social and cultural context and forms of illness and care). She has been working for 27 years in public mental health services and she has coordinated\, in Turin\, a psychological and psychiatric service for immigrants. She is the supervisor of public mental health services and of programs for immigrants. She is also a former member of the Human Rights & Social Responsibility (HR&SR) Committee of the European Association for Gestalt Therapy (EAGT). She is the co-director of the IPsiG – International Institute for Gestalt Therapy and Psychopathology (www.ipsig.it) and of the Turin School of Psychopathology as well as the co-founder of IG-FEST. She is the co-director of the book series Prospettive psicopatologiche e psicoterapia della Gestalt (Fioriti) and of Field Perspectives and Clinical Practice: Gestalt Therapy Series Books (Routledge). She has also published fiction and educational books. \nJan Roubal\, MD\, PhD\, is an associate professor at Masaryk University in Brno\, Czech Republic\, where he also works in the Center for Psychotherapy Research. He works as a psychotherapist and psychiatrist. He founded the Training in Psychotherapy Integration and the training Gestalt Studia in the Czech Republic\, and he also works as a psychotherapy trainer and supervisor internationally. He co-edited the books Current Psychotherapy\, Gestalt Therapy in Clinical Practice: From Psychopathology to the Aesthetics of Contact\, and Towards a Research Tradition in Gestalt Therapy. Recently\, he published the book Don’t Get in the Way of Hope: A Therapist’s Guide Through the Depressive Field. He is a co-founder of IG-FEST. He is a co-director of the Turin School of Psychopathology and of the book series Field Perspectives and Clinical Practice: Gestalt Therapy Series Books (Routledge). URL:https://newyorkgestalt.org/event/field-perspective-in-gestalt-therapy-and-contemporary-clinical-issues/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Presentation ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://newyorkgestalt.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/03-25_Field_Perspective_1920x1080_light.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250209T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250209T150000 DTSTAMP:20260407T005349 CREATED:20240804T224040Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250109T234147Z UID:2682-1739106000-1739113200@newyorkgestalt.org SUMMARY:Experiential Writing: A Focus on the Therapist's Perspective DESCRIPTION:Presenter: Iris Fodor \nDescription: \nToo often\, therapeutic writing focuses on case histories written by the therapist about the client. The focus of this workshop will be on writing about the impact of relational therapeutic work on the therapist. Drawing on my experience in workshops\, utilizing narrative theory\, memoir\, and experiential writing for working with people with diverse life experiences\, I will present techniques for therapists to utilize experiential writing as an extension of Gestalt therapeutic work. \nAs therapists\, we need to come to terms with our life experience\, including our losses\, our stories\, and their meaning. Therapeutic work often serves as a catalyst for our ongoing processing of our own life experience. \nIn the experiential segment of the workshop\, we will do personal writing\, focused on our experience of being a therapist. We will read some of the writing in the group and discuss how the showing\, writing\, telling\, and letting others see\, hear\, and respond grounds our understanding of ourselves and our work as Gestalt therapists. \nBiography: \nIris Fodor is a professor emerita in the Department of Applied Psychology at New York University. She has a Ph.D. in clinical psychology and a certificate in creative writing from New Directions. She is a Gestalt psychotherapist known for her teaching\, workshops\, and writings about feminism\, women’s mental health\, mindfulness\, and integrative psychotherapy. Born in the Bronx\, Iris is a lifelong social activist and is also a photographer. She has traveled\, taught\, and done workshops worldwide. She has also participated in digital storytelling projects with adolescents from diverse cultures in India\, Peru\, and South Africa. Her recent work focuses on memoir and experiential writing for therapists. She lives in New York City and Woodstock\, New York. URL:https://newyorkgestalt.org/event/experiential-writing-a-focus-on-the-therapists-perspective/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Presentation ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://newyorkgestalt.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Fodor_Writing_1920x1080.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250126T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250126T150000 DTSTAMP:20260407T005349 CREATED:20240805T185912Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250109T233050Z UID:2746-1737896400-1737903600@newyorkgestalt.org SUMMARY:2024-2025 Business Meeting #2 DESCRIPTION: URL:https://newyorkgestalt.org/event/2024-2025-business-meeting-2/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Business Meeting ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://newyorkgestalt.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/biz_meeting_bkgrnd1_light.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250119T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250119T150000 DTSTAMP:20260407T005349 CREATED:20241223T214322Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250109T201450Z UID:3346-1737291600-1737298800@newyorkgestalt.org SUMMARY:SPECIAL EVENT: The Day Before DESCRIPTION:Description: \nDonald Trump will become the next president of the United States on Monday\, January 20\, at 12 noon. \nWe are on the brink of a new world order — for the United States and countries across the globe. \nThis meeting will be an open space for us to face this reality together. \nFacilitated by Dan Bloom. URL:https://newyorkgestalt.org/event/the-day-before-a-special-event/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Special Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://newyorkgestalt.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Donald_Trump_swearing_in_ceremony_cropped.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250112T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250112T150000 DTSTAMP:20260407T005349 CREATED:20240804T224015Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250109T233021Z UID:2677-1736686800-1736694000@newyorkgestalt.org SUMMARY:Gestalt Therapy as an Aesthetic Act\, From Sensing to Forming Forms DESCRIPTION:Presenter: Jean-Marie Robine \nDescription: \nToday\, reference to philosophical aesthetics seems to be taking on an increasingly important role in the theoretical apparatus of Gestalt therapy\, including as a contribution to the development of a specific psychopathology or theorization of the therapeutic encounter. \nBaumgarten’s original aesthetics primarily concerned what I would prefer to call aesthesis\, since it is essentially a matter of feeling\, of sensitive knowledge. When we speak of anesthesia\, kinesthesia\, paresthesia\, etc.\, the various prefixes nuance the forms of aesthesis\, of feeling. Baumgarten thus invited us to embark on a veritable epistemology of sensibility: I can access the other only through my senses\, i.e.\, my perceptions and sensations in their presence\, perceptions and sensations that are then transformed into feelings\, thoughts\, representations\, imaginations\, inferences\, projections\, knowledge… \nThe evolution of the concept has clearly shown that the aesthetic act does not stop at feeling\, or even feeling what I feel\, because this feeling (aesthesis) is transformed into an act. The aesthetic act extends into a change of form\, i.e.\, metamorphosis\, transformation. \nIf\, among Gestalt therapists\, aesthetic reference is sometimes dominated by – or even limited to – what I’ve called aesthesis (aesthesis stage?)\, there’s a risk of forgetting that even this phase of the process\, this implicit\, mainly sensory-motor knowledge\, doesn’t make us mere receivers. We are actors\, that is\, producers of acts\, the first of which is to “feel what I feel.” In the therapeutic situation\, every therapist has often been confronted with the fact that some patients “feel” but don’t know how to carry out the work that enables this feeling to be transformed. The process of feeling is immobilized and fixed in various pathological forms; the metamorphosis of feeling into action itself requires an act\, an intervention. The psychotherapist’s task\, his act\, enables the patient to appropriate his feeling\, to feel that he feels\, and to experience the metamorphosis of this feeling\, the forming of form\, an aesthetic act. \nBiography: \nJean-Marie Robine has been a clinical psychologist and psychotherapist since 1967 and a Gestalt therapist since 1976. After more than 15 years as a psychologist\, then a director\, in a public health service for children\, adolescents\, and their families\, he created in 1980 the Institut Français de Gestalt-thérapie (IFGT)\, the first Gestalt institute in France. To date\, it has trained hundreds or maybe thousands of Gestalt therapists not only in France but also in Europe\, Eastern Europe\, Africa\, the USA\, and Latin America. \nHe was a co-creator of the Societé Française de Gestalt\, then of Collège Européen de Gestalt-thérapie\, national societies for Gestalt therapy\, and the European Association for Gestalt Therapy. He was also the president of EAGT in the early 1990s. \nIn addition\, Jean-Marie created the two French journals for Gestalt therapy and was their editor-in-chief for several years. Then he opened a nonprofit organization for publishing a series of Gestalt therapy books\, l’Exprimerie\, as a division of IFGT. More than 50 Gestalt therapy books\, originals and translations\, have been published\, mostly in French but also some in English. He has authored or edited nine Gestalt therapy books\, which have been translated into several languages. He is the co-editor and publisher of the last manuscript from Fritz Perls – with wonderful comments from several famous colleagues – already available in many languages\, and also the editor of Self: A Polyphony of Contemporary Gestalt Therapists\, published in many languages. \nNow retired from heading IFGT\, he remains the organizer and coordinator of its international programs\, teaching mostly abroad some supervision groups\, postgraduate programs\, and training for supervisors and trainers\, but also enjoys his (partial) retirement in the countryside near Bordeaux to grow his vegetables and fruit trees. \nWebsites:\nwww.gestalt-ifgt.com\nwww.exprimerie.fr URL:https://newyorkgestalt.org/event/gestalt-therapy-as-an-aesthetic-act-from-sensing-to-forming-forms/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Presentation ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://newyorkgestalt.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Robine_Aesthetic_Act_1920x1080.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20241208T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20241208T150000 DTSTAMP:20260407T005349 CREATED:20240804T224007Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250110T012221Z UID:2672-1733662800-1733670000@newyorkgestalt.org SUMMARY:The Field of Supervision DESCRIPTION:Presenter: Nancy Amendt-Lyon \nDescription: \nIn this presentation\, I will describe how the concepts of “parallel process\,” “field forces\,” and “reversed roles” are implemented in my supervisory work. There will be references to Gestalt psychology\, psychoanalysis\, and the continuous development of Gestalt therapy practice. After some theoretical input and a brief case vignette\, we will have breakout groups for experiential learning\, and then conclude with a discussion involving all participants. \nBiography: \nNancy Amendt-Lyon\, MA\, DPhil\, was born in New York and studied psychology in the United States\, Switzerland\, and Austria. She trained in Gestalt therapy and group psychoanalysis\, and has been in private practice in Austria since 1978. Nancy is an associate editor of Gestalt Review\, the founding chairperson of the Austrian Association for Gestalt Therapy (ÖVG)\, and a member of the Austrian Association for Psychotherapy (ÖBVP) and the European Association for Gestalt Therapy (EAGT). She has many years of experience training Gestalt therapists in Austria and abroad. Her numerous publications include Timeless Experience: Laura Perls’s Unpublished Notebooks and Literary Texts 1946–1985\, Creative License: The Art of Gestalt Therapy\, and a début novel\, Case Unclosable. URL:https://newyorkgestalt.org/event/the-field-of-supervision/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Presentation ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://newyorkgestalt.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Amendt-Lyon_supervision_1920x1080.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20241110T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20241110T150000 DTSTAMP:20260407T005349 CREATED:20241103T011331Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250110T013544Z UID:3220-1731243600-1731250800@newyorkgestalt.org SUMMARY:SPECIAL ELECTION EVENT:The Sunday After DESCRIPTION:Description: \nThe U.S. presidential election is on Tuesday\, November 5. The result is a toss-up. While we hope for good news\, one thing is sure. No matter who wins\, chaos is certain. \nThis meeting is an open space for us to face the aftermath of the election together. \nFacilitated by Dan Bloom. URL:https://newyorkgestalt.org/event/special-election-event-the-sunday-after/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Special Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://newyorkgestalt.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/After_election_event_2024_1920x1080.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20241103T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20241103T150000 DTSTAMP:20260407T005349 CREATED:20240804T223958Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250110T013617Z UID:2667-1730638800-1730646000@newyorkgestalt.org SUMMARY:The Power of Third-Person Storytelling DESCRIPTION:Presenter: Scott Kellogg\n\nDescription: \nStories and storytelling have been central to my life and my journey as a therapist. I fell in love with the Gestalt therapy of Fritz Perls through the stories that he and others shared about his work in the 1960s; I just thought that they were amazingly beautiful. \nOn a more clinical level\, I feel that Erving Polster\, in his book Every Person’s Life Deserves a Novel\, presented a series of compelling examples of the power of therapeutic storytelling as a method for working through profound and life-resonating traumas. For Polster\, the telling\, the hearing\, and the editing of narratives are central tools that can be used to help patients heal and reclaim their lives. \nFor myself\, Third-Person Storytelling\, or the repetitive telling of one’s story as if it were being witnessed from the outside\, is a therapeutic method that allows individuals to deeply engage with and express the complexities of their personal experiences while simultaneously being able to have greater emotional distance from them. This form of narrative healing is used in the treatment of histories of trauma and interpersonal abuse because it can effectively decrease the experience of fear\, shame\, and guilt while enabling the integration of difficult and painful narratives and memories. In addition to trauma work\, it can serve as a vehicle for 1) reclaiming disowned stories of success and achievement; 2) creating a path to successful goal completion; and 3) creating a more self-directed life through the practice of self-eulogy. \nIn this workshop\, I will give a brief presentation on the Three Dialogue method. This will be followed by a demonstration with a volunteer. The participants will then be invited to break into small groups so that they may have an opportunity to practice and experience the healing power of repetitive Third-Person Storytelling with one another. \nBiography: \nDr. Scott Kellogg is an ISST-certified Advanced Schema Therapist who has also trained in Gestalt therapy and Voice Dialogue. He created the Transformational Chairwork approach in 2008 and he currently teaches this method of psychotherapeutic dialogue to clinicians in both the United States and abroad. \nScott is in private practice in New York City and has served on the faculties of New York University\, The Rockefeller University\, and the Yale University School of Medicine. \nIn addition\, he is the author of Transformational Chairwork: Using Psychotherapeutic Dialogues in Clinical Practice (Rowman & Littlefield\, 2015). \nHis Chairwork website is: https://transformationalchairwork.com/ URL:https://newyorkgestalt.org/event/the-power-of-third-person-storytelling/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Presentation ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://newyorkgestalt.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Kellogg_Power_of_Storytelling_1920x1080.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20241020T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20241020T150000 DTSTAMP:20260407T005349 CREATED:20240808T002857Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250110T013326Z UID:2828-1729429200-1729436400@newyorkgestalt.org SUMMARY:SPECIAL AUTUMN EVENT ~ Hope\, Fear\, Election! Living at the Boundary DESCRIPTION:Please join us ahead of a momentous U.S. presidential election – one that will have national and international consequences. Bring your community spirit to explore democracy within an experiential group; we will also look at how the current political climate is impacting therapists and clients. \nFacilitated by Dan Bloom. URL:https://newyorkgestalt.org/event/special-autumn-event-somethings-happening-a-pre-election-gathering/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Special Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://newyorkgestalt.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/10-20-24_nyigt_election_event_votingbooths.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20241006T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20241006T150000 DTSTAMP:20260407T005349 CREATED:20240804T024718Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250110T013350Z UID:2652-1728219600-1728226800@newyorkgestalt.org SUMMARY:Gestalt Therapy in a Time of Loss and Crisis of Meaning DESCRIPTION:Presenter: Inna Didkovska \nInna Didkovska will share her experiences of being a Gestalt therapist\, supervisor\, and trainer during Ukraine’s war with Russia. She will present how the climate of danger\, grief\, loss\, and meaninglessness affects her and her colleagues throughout Ukraine. \nBiography: \nInna Didkovska is the director of Kyiv Gestalt University (KGU) and a psychotherapist with over 25 years of experience. She is an active member of the European Association for Gestalt Therapy (EAGT)\, the European Association for Psychotherapy (EAP)\, and the International Federation of Gestalt Training Organizations (FORGE). She is also a certified supervisor of the Parisian School of Gestalt\, the French Gestalt Institute\, and the Norwegian Gestalt Institute. In addition\, she is a trainer of different levels in Gestalt therapy\, the author of intensive courses in India dedicated to the theme of freedom to be oneself\, and the organizer of online educational projects (international conferences\, courses\, and webinars). URL:https://newyorkgestalt.org/event/gestalt-therapy-at-a-time-of-loss-and-a-crisis-of-meaning/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Presentation ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://newyorkgestalt.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Inna_Didkovska_Ukraine_1920x1080.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20240929T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20240929T150000 DTSTAMP:20260407T005349 CREATED:20240805T185235Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250110T013508Z UID:2739-1727614800-1727622000@newyorkgestalt.org SUMMARY:2024-2025 Business Meeting #1 DESCRIPTION: URL:https://newyorkgestalt.org/event/2024-2025-business-meeting-1/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Business Meeting ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://newyorkgestalt.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/biz_meeting_bkgrnd1_light.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20240519T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20240519T150000 DTSTAMP:20260407T005349 CREATED:20240222T031440Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250110T013741Z UID:116-1716123600-1716130800@newyorkgestalt.org SUMMARY:The Street\, Between Oikos and Polis: The Political Dimension of Caring DESCRIPTION:Presenter: Chiara Sovegni \nDescription: \nMy presentation is about my experience as a Gestalt therapist working with adolescents and people who use drugs on the street from Venice to the Bronx. My observation is of the street as a therapeutic setting and the therapist’s body as the space of creating the here and now of a relationship that tries to overcome the trickery of institutions in order to deliver care. \nI would like to present this topic because\, after almost 20 years of working on the street in two different countries and with hundreds of different individuals\, I am aware of the importance of how “giving voice to those who don’t have one” is part of my responsibility as a therapist and human being. \nThrough books like Growing Up Absurd by Paul Goodman and Harmonizing Psychotherapy and Community to Enhance Everyday Living by Erving Polster\, I learned that the Gestalt approach is about responsibility\, and how psychotherapy can be used in a creative way to be accessible to a greater number of people. \nThe extraordinary flexibility of the Gestalt work allows you to exit your office and go wherever people congregate\, taking care of the quality of the contact and experiencing new ways of staying together. \nI will discuss how meeting a person where they are at\, having a non-judgmental approach\, and considering the life they are living as the best they can do in the here and now are the only ways to promote the change that can save a human life\, and I will share a couple of clinical cases. \nBiography: \nChiara Sovegni is a Gestalt therapist with a five-year bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of Padua\, Italy\, and a four-year master’s degree in Gestalt therapy from GTK Institute\, Italy. \nAfter years of private practice in individual therapy with kids and families\, she started in 2004 to work with adolescents and people who use drugs for the Department of Health and Social Services in the metropolitan areas of Venice and Padua. In 2018\, she moved to New York City\, where she worked as a life coach with Italian women until COVID happened. Since 2020\, she has worked in the South Bronx\, NYC\, with a nonprofit organization\, where in 2021 she became the co-director of programs\, taking care of the clinical staff’s supervision. URL:https://newyorkgestalt.org/event/the-street-between-oikos-and-polis-the-political-dimension-of-caring/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Presentation ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://newyorkgestalt.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/vence_bronx-1.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="Chiara Sovegni":MAILTO:nyigtevents@gmail.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20240414T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20240414T150000 DTSTAMP:20260407T005349 CREATED:20240222T024047Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250110T014827Z UID:108-1713099600-1713106800@newyorkgestalt.org SUMMARY:A Gestalt Approach to Working with Children and Adolescents DESCRIPTION:Presenter: Jon Blend \nDescription: \nThe renowned child and adolescent therapist Dr. Violet Oaklander posited that two common reasons for young people entering therapy are a) difficulty with using one or more contact skills and b) low self-esteem. Many have also experienced difficulties with play and playfulness\, especially since COVID. Working with young people requires an awareness of maturational processes and of the changing fields of family\, school\, and community. Young people differ from adults in terms of their awareness\, responsibility\, and response-ability. As children develop\, some extend their lifespace with relative ease while others struggle with the process of “disembedding” from their family of origin (Mark McConville\, 2013). \nWhat helps a nervous\, troubled youngster join the relational dance\, crossing the threshold into therapy? In answering this\, I will first share a memory of an encounter I experienced in therapy as a child. Next\, I’ll introduce some “icebreaker” activities that I find help many young clients feel at ease and met in a relational dialogue. Then\, a few vignettes from clinical practice will illustrate an arts-based therapy approach. Arts modalities often function as “experience-near” vehicles for children and adolescents\, helping them explore issues of complexity and “unfinished business.” The arts may also operate as a “relational third\,” enabling therapist and client to find their unique co-regulatory rhythm. \nBreakout session – some topic options: \n\nParticipants may wish to explore their experience of first encounters with younger clients in therapy. What makes for “good-enough” hosting by the therapist? Are there limitations that such an orientation might bring?\nAs our younger clients develop and grow\, some of the quests they encounter en route to adulthood include searches for identity\, autonomy\, equality\, morality\, and intimacy. What issues are most important to the young clients that you work with?\nIt’s commonly held today (by the World Health Organization\, etc.) that the process of maturation extends into the mid-twenties and beyond. What implications does this have for current psychotherapy training and practice?\n\nBiography: \nJon Blend\, MA\, is British\, of Austro-Russian heritage. He is a UKCP and ECP registered Gestalt psychotherapist\, child psychotherapist\, clinical supervisor\, musician\, and Playback Theatre performer (www.londonplayback.com). He maintains a psychotherapy practice in London seeing adults\, children\, and supervisees. \nJon is a faculty member of the Institute for Arts in Therapy and Education and an approved trainer with the Violet Solomon Oaklander Foundation. Since 2002\, he has taught the Oaklander model of projective arts therapy to psychotherapists and other professionals. His career in adult and child mental health began 40 years ago\, as a social worker in various hospital and community-based settings. \nJon has delivered Gestalt training workshops and presentations to institutes and organizations in Bulgaria\, Croatia\, Georgia\, Poland\, Romania\, the USA\, and the UK. His interests include animal-assisted therapies\, interfaith working\, and transcultural and intergenerational dialogue. For nine articles and training information\, visit https://www.gacp.co.uk. URL:https://newyorkgestalt.org/event/a-gestalt-approach-to-working-with-children-and-adolescents/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Presentation ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://newyorkgestalt.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/children_adolescents.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="Jon Blend":MAILTO:nyigtevents@gmail.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20240324T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20240324T150000 DTSTAMP:20260407T005349 CREATED:20240127T120451Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250110T014854Z UID:101-1711285200-1711292400@newyorkgestalt.org SUMMARY:Aging\, Illness\, and Loss: Being a Fully Human Therapist DESCRIPTION:Presenter: James Battaglia \nDescription: \nThis presentation’s focus is on enhancing one’s own experiences of aging\, illness\, and loss and to regard these experiences as an essential part of being a fully human and authentic therapist. The assumption is that by confronting these issues in our own lives\, we can be more present with our patients as they confront these issues in their own. This sensitivity is not without its challenges. A therapist may desire\, or may not have a choice\, to disclose one’s own illness with patients – a choice that may be fraught and lead to unexpected consequences in the treatment. This presentation provides a place of safety in which participants may choose to share their own experiences and the expectation that all will be received with compassion\, respect\, and confidentiality. Aging\, illness\, and loss are present throughout the lifespan\, so all are welcome irrespective of age or health condition. \nDuring this presentation\, I will share my experience with aging\, illness\, and loss especially in the context of my own recent history. During the discussion\, the three pillars of Gestalt therapy will be addressed – phenomenology\, field theory\, and dialogue. During the breakout groups\, participants will be asked to discuss their own experiences with aging\, illness\, and loss and how they may (or may not) impact the therapeutic work. One major goal of the presentation is to enhance awareness and acceptance of our own experiences – and those of colleagues – as therapists so we can be in a better position to recognize them and address them with our patients. \nBiography: \nJames (Jim) Battaglia\, PhD\, is a school psychologist by training\, now licensed in NY and NJ\, who was the teaching assistant to Iris Fodor\, PhD\, at NYU’s School Psychology program in the mid-1980s. After some 30 years of doing psychoanalytic-oriented psychotherapy with children and adults\, he wandered into the Gestalt therapy world at Iris’s encouragement by attending a GATLA European Residential in Buffalo\, NY\, in 2009. He studied at GATLA for four years before turning to the Pacific Gestalt Institute (PGI)\, where he attends annual residential training – now as a more senior trainee and party organizer. Jim also has been a noncontinuous member of NYIGT since 2013 and has had leadership positions in AAGT. \nHis medical history includes HIV\, cardiac disease (including a heart attack in 2010 while in LA)\, COVID\, and prostate cancer – diagnosed in 2021\, for which he was treated with surgery and 37 radiation sessions in 2022. Two significant losses include his “big brother\,” Bud Feder\, in 2018\, and his “big sister\,” Lynn Smith\, in 2023 the day after his 62nd birthday. Lynn was his high school guidance counselor\, who became his friend\, and both were diagnosed with cancer around the same time. \nJim has found he cannot ignore his aging\, illness\, and loss because he is heavily engaged with treating practitioners\, his friends talk of their own experiences\, and his patients invariably bring up their own during therapy sessions. When it becomes too much\, Jim turns to his husband\, Jonathan\, who\, thankfully\, is younger and healthier but who\, not unexpectedly\, has his own losses that are now part of their shared experience. Jim is an advocate of early PSA testing (starting at age 40)\, and he will be offering in-person and online therapy groups for gay men diagnosed with prostate cancer. URL:https://newyorkgestalt.org/event/aging-illness-and-loss-being-a-fully-human-therapist/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Presentation ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://newyorkgestalt.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/woman_on_couch.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="James Battaglia":MAILTO:events@nyigt.org END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20240211T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20240211T150000 DTSTAMP:20260407T005349 CREATED:20240126T081825Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250110T014922Z UID:76-1707656400-1707663600@newyorkgestalt.org SUMMARY:Exploring Subverbal Interactions in Everyday Life and in Therapy: Gestures and Their Meanings DESCRIPTION:Each facial and bodily gesture we make expresses an important meaning\, and demonstrates how we experience ourselves within our world. When fully felt and understood\, they tell us something we had not known about ourselves in our relationships or that we knew\, but now see more clearly. \nDuring this workshop\, we learn how our gestures form complex negotiations with others. They are the pathway to what has gone on in our earlier histories\, what they entail for this present moment\, and what they anticipate for the future. Aside from their communicative dimensions\, gestures don’t merely express thinking\, gestures are thoughts forming in the phenomenal field. Once aware of their meanings\, we have the capacity to change our habitual and rigid gestural patterns in relation – patient-therapist\, partner-partner\, employer-employee\, teacher-student – to more spontaneous and free exchanges. \nBiography:  \nRuella Frank\, PhD\, brings many years of experience to her work as a Gestalt psychotherapist – as a professional dancer and choreographer\, yoga practitioner\, student of various movement theories/therapies\, and student of Laura Perls\, co-founder of Gestalt therapy. Ruella is the originator of Developmental Somatic Psychotherapy\, founder and director of the Center for Somatic Studies\, faculty at the New York Institute for Gestalt Therapy\, guest faculty at Gestalt Associates for Psychotherapy\, and adjunct faculty at the Gestalt Institute of Toronto; she teaches throughout the United States\, Europe\, Eurasia\, Mexico\, South America\, and Canada. She is the author of articles and chapters in various publications and the book Body of Awareness: A Somatic and Developmental Approach to Psychotherapy (2001\, GestaltPress\, available in four languages)\, the co-author of The First Year and the Rest of Your Life: Movement\, Development\, and Psychotherapeutic Change (2010\, Routledge Press\, available in three languages)\, and the author of The Bodily Roots of Experience in Psychotherapy (2022\, Routledge Press\, available in seven languages). Her video Introduction to Developmental Somatic Psychotherapy is available in three languages. www.somaticstudies.com URL:https://newyorkgestalt.org/event/exploring-subverbal-interactions-in-everyday-life-and-in-therapy-gestures-and-their-meanings/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Presentation ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://newyorkgestalt.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/hands_talking.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20240114T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20240114T150000 DTSTAMP:20260407T005349 CREATED:20240427T090256Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250803T203609Z UID:1637-1705237200-1705244400@newyorkgestalt.org SUMMARY:WINTER SPECIAL EVENT – Encountering Artificial Intelligence – Exploring a Phenomenology of Embodied Experience DESCRIPTION:On October 30\, 2023\, the White House announced an executive order on global AI safety. \nIt is increasingly clear how a profound journey toward a new civilization is emerging\, different from the one in which we were born. AI isn’t just coming\, or coming fast. It is here. Even if we don’t access it\, or like it. And it is not so much our accessing AI\, but how it is accessing us. Within our daily lives. \nHow do we experience this as Gestalt therapists? How might AI impact Gestalt therapy communities all over the world? \nThis special event will: \n\nExplore a phenomenology of embodied experience in relation to AI;\nConsider how to integrate Gestalt theory into clinical practice within a situated world of AI;\nIdentify new developments in AI and how we may understand these in terms of field emergence;\nExplore whether as Gestalt therapists we may creatively interact with AI;\nAsk “Can AI be ethical?” and “Can an AI landscape be relational and field-emergent?”\n\nHow do we want to participate in the unfolding of this new lifeworld? And who are we becoming right now\, as Gestalt therapists in this changing landscape? \nBiographies: \nMaciej Lukaszewicz is a fourth-year student at Wielkopolska Szkoła Psychoterapii Gestalt (WSPG) in Poznań\, Poland. He has been in clinical practice with clients since 2021. \nFor the last 15 years\, he has been working in culture and art management\, including for Robert Wilson at his Watermill Center\, in New York\, from 2012 to 2015. \nMaciej graduated with an MA in theology and philosophy from Adam Mickiewicz University in Poland and a MSc in European policy and management from Birkbeck College\, University of London\, UK. \nIn so-called free time\, he leads a theater group and directs performances or spends hours staring at miniatures in medieval manuscripts. \n——— \nClaire Spiller is the current secretary of the New York Institute for Gestalt Therapy. She is also a UKCP registered and accredited Gestalt psychotherapist\, and a clinical supervisor approved by the Metanoia Institute\, London. \nShe is also a graduate of the Online Therapy Institute and the Developmental Somatic Psychotherapy program at the Center for Somatic Studies. In addition\, she has published an article entitled “A Year of the Pandemic: Existential themes for psychotherapists” in Existential Analysis\, 2021\, Vol. 32.\, No. 2\, and is working on a paper on phenomenology in Gestalt therapy. \nClaire has been working clinically online since 2016\, and has a background in writing\, designing\, and delivering a range of clinical training courses locally and nationally in the UK\, teaching and assessing qualified and trainee therapists on working with survivors of traumatic experiences. \nShe is also on the faculty of the “Working with the Complexities of Trauma” certificate program of Therapy and Counselling\, which has been accredited by the National Council of Integrative Psychotherapists\, offers international online training\, and was named the best UK professional therapy training service of 2023 in Wales. \nClaire has a private practice in South Wales\, UK\, working remotely and in person. URL:https://newyorkgestalt.org/event/winter-special-event-encountering-artificial-intelligence-exploring-a-phenomenology-of-embodied-experience/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Presentation,Special Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://newyorkgestalt.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/SAI_01-14-24.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20231217T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20231217T150000 DTSTAMP:20260407T005349 CREATED:20240427T012940Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250110T015018Z UID:1602-1702818000-1702825200@newyorkgestalt.org SUMMARY:Reading Gestalt Therapy: Excitement and Growth in the Human Personality DESCRIPTION:Gestalt Therapy: Excitement and Growth in the Human Personality by Perls\, Hefferline\, and Goodman (PHG) is a complicated historical document holding the richness of the novel thinking of its time and\, importantly\, the genius of its authors. PHG now 70 years forward is widely recognized as Gestalt therapy’s founding text. Since the first coherent presentation in 1951\, practitioners have been evaluating\, clarifying\, redefining\, and expanding upon the details of its theory and practice. It has been read\, cited\, criticized\, and acclaimed. It has provided fertile ground for questioning ideas\, learning\, and impetus for new theory and practice. \nThis presentation will discuss PHG as a comprehensive presentation of Gestalt therapy theory and practice. I will explore its value as a formative text for new and experienced practitioners\, provide a brief sampling of its ideas\, share my experience reading PHG line by line in an experiential group\, and discuss aesthetic and hermeneutic perspectives and critical comments. The presentation will involve didactic and experiment segments. \nBiography: \nPerry Klepner\, LCSW\, has been a psychotherapist in private practice in New York City and Kingston\, NY\, since 1977. He has been an instructor at several Gestalt institutes and provides training\, supervision\, and individual\, couples\, and group therapy. He trained with Laura Perls\, Isadore From\, and Richard Kitzler at the New York Institute for Gestalt Therapy\, where he is a past president (1993–95) and a full member\, fellow\, and instructor. He has authored articles and led workshops on Gestalt therapy at numerous conferences in the U.S. and abroad. URL:https://newyorkgestalt.org/event/reading-gestalt-therapy-excitement-and-growth-in-the-human-personality/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Presentation ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://newyorkgestalt.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/gestalt_therapy_SL1360.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20231112T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20231112T150000 DTSTAMP:20260407T005349 CREATED:20240425T221858Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250110T015044Z UID:1548-1699794000-1699801200@newyorkgestalt.org SUMMARY:Gender Fluidity: A Modern Revolution in Today’s World DESCRIPTION:Presenter: Lee Zevy \nDescription: \nWe are currently experiencing a confusing destabilizing revolution of all aspects of sexuality and gender as evolving heterosexual and LGBTQI+ definitions\, meanings\, identities\, categories\, and behavior undergo dramatic changes. Although in many ways\, these changes are occurring worldwide\, each country and culture is determining how it integrates or tries to inhibit what is happening. \n\nIn many ways\, this process harkens back to other clinical revolutions\, like the advent of psychoanalysis and when Gestalt therapy and the other experiential therapies changed the relationality of the therapeutic environment. \n\nFor clinicians\, gender fluidity can be a confusing array of categories\, identifiers\, and meanings that have to be negotiated with each client. \n\nDuring this presentation\, I’ll ground the current evolution of gender fluidity historically and then focus on the ways it affects the field clinically. Exercises in breakout groups will allow participants to experience\, play with\, and discuss their relation to this unfolding process. Then we will re-form into the whole group to continue discussion and uncover emerging themes. \nBiography: \nLee Zevy is one of the founders of Identity House\, a walk-in peer counseling and psychotherapy community mental health center for the LGBTQI+ community in New York City\, which began in 1971. After completing her training at the New York Institute for Gestalt Therapy\, where she is now a fellow\, she became the clinical director of Identity House for many years and still does supervising and training there. In addition to becoming president of NYIGT twice\, she teaches\, supervises\, writes\, and publishes on the theory and practice of Gestalt therapy. Her current interest is how the fluidity of gender and sexuality today is moving to change the discourse of society around these topics. URL:https://newyorkgestalt.org/event/gender-fluidity-a-modern-revolution-in-todays-world/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Presentation ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://newyorkgestalt.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/lgbtq_kids.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20231015T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20231015T150000 DTSTAMP:20260407T005349 CREATED:20240425T215539Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250110T015109Z UID:1540-1697374800-1697382000@newyorkgestalt.org SUMMARY:The Zen of Gestalt Therapy DESCRIPTION:Presenter: Olivier Winghart \nDescription: \nAutumn brings us a special time for contemplating impermanence\, and so I’m pleased to offer my presentation about Zen and Gestalt therapy this month. I plan to take up: \n\nThe importance of Zen and Taoism for the Gestalt therapy pioneers.\nThe parallels between Zen practice and Gestalt therapy practice for a therapist.\nA closer look at a few relevant sources (F. Perls\, J. Enright\, D. Price\, M. Epstein).\nInterpersonal meditation for individual therapy and couples therapy.\nThe differences in intention and perspective between Zen Buddhism and Gestalt therapy (including spiritual awakening\, the concept of self\, and the most precious gift to give a human being).\nInspiration from this quote: “Listening to the ongoing process\, and getting out of the way.”\n\nWe shall also explore the topic experientially in small groups. \nBiography: \nOlivier has been an associate member of the Institute since 2015 or 2016\, thanks to a suggestion by the late Sean Gaffney and practical help from Susan Gregory. \nHe has a diploma in engineering from École Centrale Paris\, and two Master of Science degrees – one in computer science (from UT Austin\, USA)\, and one in Gestalt psychotherapy (from the University of Derby\, UK). \nOlivier’s first career was in computer science and artificial intelligence\, and in the early 2000s\, he started to train in Gestalt therapy. He has maintained a private practice since 2008\, first in Stockholm\, Sweden\, then in Lyon\, France (individual and couples therapy). He also has translated six books related to Gestalt therapy from English into French. \nRegarding the topic of the presentation\, Olivier has maintained a regular Zen practice since 1987 and was ordained as a novice priest in 2020 in the Japanese Soto Zen School. URL:https://newyorkgestalt.org/event/the-zen-of-gestalt-therapy/ LOCATION:Zoom CATEGORIES:Presentation ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://newyorkgestalt.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/zen_and_therapy.jpg END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR