Reading: Behind the flood’s blue varnish (in German)
Anke Glasmacher, Christoph Danne and Simone Scharbert explore the horizon in their texts, sometimes linguistically, sometimes figuratively, sometimes out of the moment, sometimes from memory.
Christoph Danne/Cologne, the world traveller, has attempted to poetically survey Catalan landscapes in his new volume of poetry Firnis & Revolte, telling of the people and their lives there.
In her new book Zur Stunde Blau (Blue at the Hour), Anke Glasmacher/Cologne explores the concept of language. Blue, often seen as the poetic color of longing and transience, references the expressions of Georg Heym, Hilde Domin, and Else Lasker-Schüler and further, symbolizes the particular speechlessness of our time.
Wie es auch ist (However it is), is the title of Simone Scharbert’s/Erftstadt lyrical essays on Instagram as well as her current texts, in which she has preserved “Fund- und Flutstücke” (found things and flood pieces) from the flooded Erftstadt-Blessem. Images that weave into the memory of the flood disaster in July 2021 and give hope, not only to the people who shouldered this disaster but to all readers.
The three lyricists take you on a poetic journey, sometimes serious, sometimes cheerful, sometimes comforting, sometimes sad, and present to you an artistic variety of voices in today’s poetry.
Christoph Danne
Blaue Nächte, Zikaden, das Meer
(Blue nights, Cicadas, the sea)
Born 1976 in Bonn, lives in Köln. Studied German language and literature in Salamanca, Berlin and Cologne.
Winner of the workshop prize from the Literature Atelier Cologne in 2013 and winner of the poetry prize postpoetry NRW in 2014, in 2019 he received the working scholarship of the state of NRW for literature.
Christoph Danne organizes the poetry reading stage HELLOPOETRY!, he curates the poetry festival Satelliten with the Cologne Literature House and the poetry festival Anderland with the Bittner bookstore. He has written various publications as co-founder of the tauland publishing house. Danne’s texts have been translated into Arabic and Spanish, adapted to music and stage.
To date, eleven volumes of poetry have been published, most recently the artist volume “Firnis & Revolte” (Varnish & Revolt) (Corvinus Presse, Berlin 2024) and “Gute Nachrichten” (Good News) (Edition Virgines, Düsseldorf 2023).
Anke Glasmacher
ich denke: also blau
(I think: therefore blue)
Born in 1969 in Bensberg, lives and works in Cologne. Studied German, philosophy and education at the universities of Bonn and Cologne and completed further training in drama and short film at the Drehbuchschule Berlin.
Several publishings, most recently: “Zur Stunde Blau” (Blue at the hour) (poetry, edition offenes feld, Dortmund 2024) and “Der Buchstabe Blau” (The letter blue) (poetry, Edition Virgines, Düsseldorf 2023). In addition, numerous publications in anthologies and literary magazines.
Several awards and grants, including 2022 work scholarship from the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, 2017/2018 “Work probes”- scholarship from the Kultursekretariate NRW, 2013 winner of the postpoetry.NRW poetry prize
Simone Scharbert
Vom Rand aus. Wächst das Rettende auch?
(From the Edge. Is the rescuing growing as well?)
Born in Aichach in 1974, she studied political science, philosophy & literature in Munich, Augsburg and Vienna, then received her doctorate in political science; lives and works as a freelance author and lecturer in Erftstadt.
She is a lecturer at the Institute for German Language at the University of Cologne since 2017 and at the TH Köln since 2022, and since May 2022 she has been responsible for cultural education at the VHS Erftstadt.
Numerous awards, currently including the 2023 Erftstadt Cultural Prize, annual scholarship from the NRW Art Foundation, 2022 work scholarship from the state of NRW, 2021 recognition award from PEN Germany & Academy for Spoken Word for the essay “Vom Rand aus” (From the edge) and 2018 winner of the postpoetry.NRW poetry prize.
Most recently, Simone Scharbert published “Du, Alice. Eine Anrufung” (You, Alice. An Invocation) (novel, Edition AZUR, Berlin 2019/2024), “Rosa in Grau. Eine Heimsuchung” (Rose in grey. A visitation) (novel, Edition AZUR, Berlin 2023) and “Wie es auch ist. Fund- und Flutstücke” (However it is. Found things and Flooded Pieces)(poetry & collage, Edition Virgines, Düsseldorf 2022).