In his 1923 Nobel lecture, Albert Einstein famously said: "The intellect seeking after an integrated theory cannot rest content with the assumption that there exist two distinct fields totally independent of each other by their nature."

 

Our vision in chess is much of the same. Since 2002, I have been working on and refining a unique approach to chess, which I use both in my games and to teach my students. I believe that, conceptually, there are actually TWO boards in chess—the light squares and the dark squares—with two struggles, going on side by side. 

​

For me, chess has always been, above all, an art—a way to express myself. I envision us building a beautiful cottage, a Dacha, on the chessboard!

​

Here, in the Dacha Academy, we will learn how to build on the light and dark squares, in harmony, with pieces and pawns acting as bricks and builders. The goal is for us to learn how to use these ideas in our own games to plan and spot tactics from afar. In essence, the colors are our guide, a personal chess GPS!

​

Just like Einstein's intellectual need to combine electromagnetism and gravity into a single elegant theory, we are in a search for a form of "chess relativity," for an explosive chess experience. We will attempt to fuse the positional and the tactical, the light and the dark squares, in a quest for harmony—both on and off the chessboard.

​

I invite one and all to explore, experience and enjoy our royal game together.

​

Bon Voyage!

​

Yaacov Norowitz