Collective Writing of the Present: Utopia Eastern Europe starts with an authors’ meeting on 1 and 2 December

Utopia Eastern Europe
Performances, Readings, Discussions, Concerts, DJ Sets
Winter 2023/2024

Two years later, the now historic date of the extension of the war in Ukraine not only stands for a war of aggression, but also for a shift in perspective: Ukraine has moved to the focus of German attention and reveals the extent to which the German view eastwards has been shaped by stereotypes, ignorance, and disinterest. Within the framework of Utopia Eastern Europe, artists explore further aspects of resistance and resilience: humour in art, poetry as a form of survival, and discussions on art as a means of overcoming the present. What does this localization ‘East’ mean and do we even still need it? How can a dialogue ensue—or has it long been underway—in poetry and in music? And isn’t art the most fertile ground for a collective utopia anyway?

Kick-Off: Authors’ Meeting at the Literary Colloquium Berlin

December 1 & 2 2023
Literary Colloquium Berlin
multilingual
Tickets €8/5
2-Day-Ticket €10/7
hkw.de/webshop

Eastern Europe occupies a strange position in the symbolic structure called ‘Europe’: it is part of the continent, however, it has not been accepted into the much invoked European ‘we’. Eastern Europe is always that which ‘we’ are not. A place of violence and political crises. This has recently become clear again during the demonstrations in Belarus in 2020/21 and Russia’s extension of the war in Ukraine on 24 February 2022. At the same time, news reportage in Germany is dominated by the image of white, Christian, female refugees as if they were a mirror of its own racist presuppositions. This is contrasted by an Eastern European reality that both in the past and present is shaped by the living together of different people and nations. A place that has more in common with a plural German society than it sometimes appears to have. That is why we have invited authors to a meeting at which it becomes clear: the literature that is produced in Germany today cannot be separated from the realities beyond its geographical borders. At the Literary Colloquium Berlin, authors, who look from the West to the East and from the East to the West, come together to discuss collective writing practices of the present.
 
During the day, there will be internal discussions, while in the evening the public is kindly invited to take part in an exchange of texts and positions. These will revolve around the status quo and the question of a Utopia Eastern Europe.

With Yevgenia Belorusets, Julia Cimafiejeva, Max Czollek, Gintaras Grajauskas, Yuriy Gurzhi, Anna Hetzer, Mely Kiyak, Anastasiia Kosodii, Necati Öziri, Ivana Sajko, Sasha Marianna Salzmann, Krzysztof Siwczyk, Deniz Utlu, Miruna Vlada, Uljana Wolf, Anja Zag Golob

Utopia Eastern Europe will continue in February 2024 with performances, readings, discussions, concerts and DJ sets at Haus der Kulturen der Welt.

More on the programme: hkw.de/UtopiaEasternEurope

We look forward to receiving your interview request and accreditation at presse@hkw.de

This project is co-conceptualized by visiting curator Max Czollek with Sasha Marianna Salzmann. Funded by the Hauptstadtkulturfonds. In cooperation with the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung and the Heinrich Böll Stiftung.

Visit Information

Opening Times
Wed.–Mon. 12:00–19:00
Extended opening hours during evening programmes.
Free admission on Mondays and on every first Sunday of the month (Museumssonntag Berlin). 
 
Childcare with programme
HKW offers free childcare for many of its programmes. For further information visit hkw.de
 
Current information about visiting and accessibility.
 
Weltwirtschaft Restaurant is open daily, from 12:00–00:00 on weekdays and 10:00–00:00 on weekends.

Contact

Jan Trautmann

Pressesprecher
Lead Communications Officer
Haus der Kulturen der Welt (HKW)
John-Foster-Dulles-Allee 10
10557 Berlin

T: + 49 (0) 30 397 87 157
presse@hkw.de