Marianna Kiyanovska (L'viv/Krakau), eine der wichtigsten Stimmen der zeitgenössischen ukrainischen Poesie, wird ihren Gedichtband "Babyn Yar - Voices" vorstellen, der in viele Sprachen (u. a. ins Amerikanische und Polnische) übersetzt wurde und in der Ukraine, in Polen und in den USA mehrere wichtige Preise erhalten hat. Mit Hilfe einer höchst originellen Empathie-Poetik sucht die Dichterin Zugang zu den Erfahrungen der Opfer des größten Holocaust-Massakers in der Ukraine (im September 1941 in der Nähe von Kyiv) vor der Einrichtung der Vernichtungslager und überlagert sie mit den Erfahrungen des aktuellen Krieges Russlands gegen die Ukraine im Donbas. Marianna Kiyanovska wird auch ihren neuen Gedichtband "Блискавка зустрічає воду і вітер" (Blitz trifft Wasser und Wind) vorstellen, der soeben im ukrainischen Original erschienen ist und im vergangenen Jahr während eines Stipendiums in Berlin entstanden ist und dessen Behandlung des aktuellen Krieges an den Band "Babyn Jar" anknüpft.
Beide Bände werden nächstes Jahr in deutscher Übersetzung bei Suhrkamp erscheinen. Claudia Dathe, eine der wichtigsten Vermittlerinnen ukrainischer Gegenwartsliteratur in deutscher Sprache, wird ihre Übersetzungen der Gedichte von Marianna Kiyanovska lesen und an einem Gespräch mit der Dichterin teilnehmen, das von Susanne Frank moderiert wird.

Marianna Kiyanovska (L'viv/Krakow), one of the most important voices in contemporary Ukrainian poetry, will present her poetry collection "Babyn Yar - Voices", which has been translated into many languages (including American and Polish) and has won several important awards in Ukraine, Poland and the US. With the help of a highly original empathy poetics, the poet seeks access to the experiences of the victims of the largest Holocaust massacre in Ukraine (in September 1941 near Kyiv) before the establishment of the extermination camps and superimposes them on the experiences of Russia's current war against Ukraine in the Donbas. Marianna Kiyanovska will also present her new volume of poetry "Блискавка зустрічає воду і вітер" (Lightening Meets Water and Wind), which has just been published in the original Ukrainian and was written last year during a fellowship in Berlin, and whose treatment of the current war ties in with the "Babyn Jar" volume.
Both volumes will come out next year in German translation with Suhrkamp. Claudia Dathe, one of the most important mediators of contemporary Ukrainian literature in German, will read her translations of Marianna Kiyanovska's poems and take part in a conversation with the poet, which will be moderated by Susanne Frank.

 

More than 600 days after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by Russian troops, Russian attack and Ukrinian defense continue unabated. The capital Kyiv and numerous other cities of Ukraine, from Kharkiv to L'viv, are regularly bombed, and at the moment (October 2023) there is even talk of one of the most massive offensives in recent months in the Donetsk region. The human losses are enormous on both sides, but peace is far from in sight. Nevertheless, life in Ukraine not only goes on in spite of all this, maintaining a normalcy has even become one of the most important and strongest tactics of survival in this permanently life-threatening situation. Through the tireless repair and reconstruction of destroyed infrastructure, as well as through numerous initiatives in the spheres of industry, business, and art and culture, not only forces are being deployed, but also energies are being released that are so important for Ukraine's survival and victory. It is hard to believe, but new visions of the future are constantly emerging in Ukraine, and not only visions, but very real projects - civic, technical-industrial, entrepreneurial or artistic-cultural - , which design a new Ukraine and even now, in the midst of war, are working on its symbolic and concrete construction. 
In the interdisciplinary series "Rethinking and Reimagining Ukraine in Times of War - and After", which is enriched by artistic contributions and in which several faculties of Humboldt University are participating, we ask how the situation of threat, attack by Russia and the ongoing war shapes and changes Ukrainian society and culture, and what this means for the future. Scholars, artists and poets from Ukraine will discuss with colleagues from Humboldt University current developments, or developments of the past that are of particular relevance for the present, and future perspectives. Experts from the fields of politics, religion, law, history and cultural studies will reflect on war-related developments in society, religion, law, languages and culture or multiculturalism, as well as in academia and its institutions. And contributions from the field of visual arts, literature and music will show how significant the role of art is as a medium of mourning and empathy, as a remedy of deep wounding and traumatization, but also as an instrument of cultural self-reflection and self-discovery and the development of visions beyond the limits of current reality.