Unseen Places (Rediscovering the Art of Observation)

From New York Times journalist Anna Kodé: a love letter to the power of experiencing the world with fresh eyes, and an investigation—both practical and philosophical—into what it means to observe.

One December afternoon a few years ago, Kodé stood in her grandmother’s kitchen in Hyderabad, India, waiting for water to boil. Feeling restless, she grabbed her pen and notebook and started to jot down everything she noticed around her. At the time, it didn’t feel that revolutionary; it was just something to do that wasn’t checking her email or scrolling online. But she continued with this practice after returning to her life in New York. It became an obsession—she found herself observing on the subway, in museums, in watering holes, and on sidewalks across the city. Before long, she discovered that it had a profound impact on her life.

In Unseen Places, Kodé embarks on a search for a more human way of living in an increasingly fast-paced and digital world. She dives into the depths of what it means to observe, tracing the history of the act, its evolutionary function, its uses in art and psychology, and its significance today—a time of heightened anxiety, loneliness, and distraction. Exploring observational practices and insights from Italy’s umarells, scientists researching smell in Southeast Asia, conceptual artists in New York, bonobo apes in the Congo Basin, and beyond, Kodé uncovers unexpected lessons about attention and the ways we can make meaning from the act of noticing. She tries out various methods in her everyday life, and what she finds is a slower, wonder-filled state of existence.

Intellectually adventurous and warm, Unseen Places is a compelling argument for paying attention. Observation, Kodé explains, is not a passive act, but a powerful and radical way of connecting—to each other, ourselves, and the world at large.