<Unlearning Optimization – with Heike Geißler — Art News
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Unlearning Optimization – with Heike Geißler

Optimierung verlernen – mit Heike Geißler

Award-winning author Heike Geißler discusses the necessity of resisting constant self-optimization and embracing despair as a response to modern labor conditions. Drawing from her experiences working in an Amazon warehouse, which inspired her book "Saisonarbeit," Geißler argues that the pressure to perform often leads to a "culture of contempt" and that acknowledging systemic failures is a vital form of resistance.

This discussion highlights the intersection of literature and social critique within the contemporary cultural landscape. By framing despair not as a failure but as a necessary reaction to exploitative hierarchies, Geißler challenges the corporate drive for efficiency and suggests that creative acts, such as letter writing, can serve as essential tools for personal and societal reclamation.