Saxifrage Institute offers a forum to think, discuss, read, and learn alongside others. We believe that thinking critically and interpersonally about the world in which we live and the conditions of our lives should not be a luxury, but rather a fundamental part of a good life. At the Saxifrage Institute, we offer the Saxifrage Conversations and the Saxifrage Seminars. Each of these are led by college professors and experts with the highest level of expertise in their fields and focus on enduring questions about the human condition. Adult learners from all backgrounds are welcome. All programs are offered with a sliding scale tuition fee, from zero dollars to the full cost of the course; we all make it possible for one another to learn. Ability to pay has absolutely no bearing on admissions to courses and Conversations cohorts.
Seminars
These are the same small, intensive, discussion-based courses we offer at colleges and universities, scheduled to fit the lives of working adults. Seminars require reading and writing outside of class and are capped at 12 participants.
Conversations
Saxifrage Conversations are ongoing discussions among continuous cohorts about issues that arise in their shared lives. Cohorts choose a theme and meet four times to discuss that theme, every two months for a discussion of about three hours each. Discussions are facilitated by a PhD, who is an equal before the questions with the rest of the group. Meetings tend to end with a shared meal and continued conversation.
A Sort of a Song
William Carlos Williams, 1944
Let the snake wait under
his weed
and the writing
be of words, slow and quick, sharp
to strike, quiet to wait,
sleepless.
—through metaphor to reconcile
the people and the stones.
Compose. (No ideas
but in things) Invent!
Saxifrage is my flower that splits
the rocks.
Saxifrages are a species of mountain plant native to New York State and the American northeast, also known as rockfoils. They grow in areas inhospitable to most other plants, making soil for plants to come after. This is a kind of heavy-handed metaphor for the work of building intellectual life at a moment of such historical change as ours, but in combination with the poem by Williams — a better mission statement than any we could have written — we chose the Saxifrage as our emblem. Saxifrage is our flower that splits the rocks.
Who we are
Saxifrage is run by a group of humanities professors. We are based in New York City.