AGYA Literary Salon

Event Series

Literature opens up windows to social realities, past, present, and future. What matters even more, fictional texts allow both author and reader to engage with these realities. The diversity of voices in world literature encourages us to shift perspectives and overcome stereotypes. 

The new event series ‘AGYA Literary Salon’ hosts both established and emerging Arab and German authors to discuss their literary careers, visions, and latest works. The Salon especially aims to introduce new literary talents and unknown texts to the public, presenting new thoughts, expressing human values, and providing a source for inspiration. 

Salon with Fadhil al-Azzawi − Literature, Politics, and Experience

The AGYA Literary Salon kicked off in Berlin hosting the Iraqi-born writer, novelist, and critic Dr. Fadhil al-Azzawi. This first Salon explored the avant-garde cross-genre literary work of Fadhil al-Azzawi, Arabic literature in Germany, and the magical effect that poems can have. The topics were discussed in conversation with invited experts, Dr. Saleem al-Bahloly, New York University Abu Dhabi, UAE and Prof. Dr. Friederike Pannewick, University of Marburg, Germany. The panel was moderated by AGYA alumnus Prof. Dr. Bilal Orfali, New York University Abu Dhabi, UAE and was held in Arabic.

Watch the video of the salon below.
 

Salon with Muhsin al-Ramli − Iraq, Dreams, and Expression

The second Salon welcomed Dr. Muhsin al-Ramli, Iraqi writer, poet, co-founder and editor of the Arabic literature magazine Alwah. Being famous for his translations of classical Spanish literature such as Don Quixote into Arabic, Muhsin al-Ramli talked about his writing experience between Iraq and Spain, about lost dreams, and his anguished Iraq. The conversation also took up the question on how to write about Iraq today without falling into the trap of memory and whether literature helps us move forward. The discussion was held in Arabic.

Watch the video of the salon below.

Salon with Maha Hassan − War, Writing, and Freedom

The third Salon hosted the Syrian-Kurdish novelist and short story writer Maha Hassan residing in France. Sharing her writing experiences, the conversation with Maha Hassan reflected on what it means to write in Arabic from exile and to write freely about a prison that was once considered home. The conversation was held in Arabic and moderated by AGYA alumnis Prof. Dr. Bilal Orfali with an introduction by AGYA member Dr. Amro Ali.

Watch the video of the salon below.
 

Salon with Daniela Danz – Literature between Society and Language

For the fourth salon, AGYA welcomed the award-winning German poet and novelist Daniela Danz. Addressing social and political questions of our age, her literary pieces show a thorough and skillful use of the German language, which was honored with the German Language Award 2022. As art historian and Vice President of the Academy of Sciences and Literature Mainz , Daniela Danz is also actively bridging research, teaching, and arts. With AGYA alumnus Dr. Kirill Dmitriev, she reflected on her experiments with literary forms and genres, her life between creative writing and academic research, and her approaches to time, space, and meaning. The conversation was held in German.  

Watch the video of the salon below.

The AGYA Literary Salon builds on the series of very successful online interviews with prominent Arab and German writers, journalists, and intellectuals such as Dr. Jokha Alharthi, Christoph Reuter, and Hoda Barakat organized in the framework of the AGYA Alumni Lecture Series in 2021.

Media Echo

AlwatanVoice: 'الصالون الأدبيّ الأوّل مع فاضل العزّاوي.. عن الأدب والسياسة والتجربة' (in Arabic), 19 September 2022

Diwan Al-Arab: 'الصالون الأدبي الثاني مع محسن الرملي' (in Arabic), 17 October 2022

Diwan Al-Arab: 'الصالون الأدبي الثالث مع مها حسن- عن الحرب والكتابة والحريّة' (in Arabic), 20 November 2022