Izod, Karen (2016). ‘Representation, Place, and Equivalent Realities: an Exploration of Relational Perspectives on Representation and Meaning’, Organisational and Social Dynamics, Volume 16, Number 1, May 2016, pp. 110-128(19). Karnac Books.
Especially relevant in the continuing complexities of the UK Referendum, this timely paper from Karen Izod focuses on the nature of representation as both an authorised function of governance, and as a negotiation with one’s inner world, sense of identity, and sense of place. It opens up ideas about intentions and consequence of representational acts as they are expressed in unconscious and symbolic ways.
Abstract
Karen brings together ideas from a number of workshops that she has run in the UK and in Sweden, which explore the centrality of place as a formative aspect of how we develop our patterns of attachment, and its significance in thinking about the here in working in the here and now. She proposes that place as a contributing factor in the way that we take up roles in particular those representing our organisations and communities. Contexts in which Karen has developed and applied this work include: integrated city planning, working in globally dispersed organisations, and brand creation through acts of representation.