Anachoresis: participation through fragments

The term ''anachoresis'' is derived from the Greek verb ''anachorein'' (‘to withdraw’). The practice of retreat has a long tradition in art and cultural history: from the historical social ‘retreat’ of East Asian artist-scholars into a state of contemplation to the staging of self-isolation in modern and contemporary artworks by Joseph Beuys or Tehching Hsieh. Often, this process is associated with a surge of creativity and self-reflection. But what happens when the retreat is carried out c...