The International Cities of Refuge Network ICORN was established in 2005. Its purpose is to provide shelter and help and provide a space for creative repressed writers – most often hiding or prohibited from printing in their country. ICORN is an independent international organization currently gathering 65 cities and member regions in Europe and beyond, offering a safe haven (temporary and long-term protection) for persecuted writers, creators and human rights defenders; supporting freedom of expression, defending democratic values and promoting international solidarity.
Every city worldwide can become a member of ICORN. In Poland, Kraków is a member city since 2001, Wrocław joined ICORN in connection with the preparations for the European Capital of Culture in October 2015 as the second city in Central and Eastern Europe. Since last year, Gdańsk is also a member of the network, and the first writer will appear there in 2018. We will talk about how cities can react to the current political situation in the world through culture with Danuta Glondys from Villa Decius Association, Katarzyna Janusik from Wrocław Literature House, Piotr Stasiowski from Gdańsk City Gallery and Helge Lunde – Executive Director of ICORN.
“The International Cities of Refuge Network ICORN – cities for the authors or authors for the cities?” panel will be held on the 15th of March 2018 in Barbara, at Świdnicka Street 8B in Wrocław. You can register to the event here.
Speakers:
Danuta Glondys – holder of a PhD title in cultural studies, MA in English studies and political science. In the years 1993-99, she was a chief of the Krakow Municipality’s Culture Department, responsible for the development of new cultural policy and Krakow’s application for the title of the European City of Culture in 2000. Later she became a regional director of the Local Government Partnership Programme (USAID) and an expert of the European Commission for the selection and monitoring of the preparations of the European Capitals of Culture in the years 2013-2018. Between 2001-2016, she was a director of the Villa Decius Association, currently a full-time Plenipotentiary of the Board for International Affairs and a lecturer at the Jagiellonian University and the AGH University of Science and Technology. Author of articles and editor of several dozen publications on cultural management and relations between culture and broadly defined field of politics and EU integration. In 2010, the Krakow-based Attica publishing house issued her two monographs: “Europejska Stolica Kultury. Miejsce kultury w polityce Unii Europejskiej” and „Kraków 2000 – Europejskie Miasto Kultury. Summa Factorum”. Awarded, among others, with the Bene Merito honorary badge by the Minister of Foreign Affairs and with the Order of the Rebirth of Poland.
Katarzyna Janusik – studied English literature and translation. She’s an editor, translator of fiction and non-fiction, as well as project manager specializing in literature and photography. For many years she worked as an editor and head of the children’s division of Znak Publishers in Kraków. Between 2014 and 2016, she coordinated the literary team of the European Capital of Culture Wrocław 2016 and UNESCO World Book Capital Wrocław 2016, and now she’s the head of the programme and PR team at Wrocław Literature House. She coordinates the activities of the International Cities of Refuge Network (ICORN) in Wrocław.
Piotr Stasiowski – a graduate of art history at the University of Wrocław and curatorial studies at the Jagiellonian University. Between 2006-2011 he ran the BWA Studio at BWA Wrocław Galerie Sztuki Współczesnej. From 2012 to 2015, he was a chief curator of Wrocław Contemporary Museum. Since 2016, he has been the director of the Gdańsk City Gallery. Stasiowski has curated over 40 individual and group exhibitions; he is the author of texts that have appeared in catalogues of exhibitions, books, art magazines. He comes from Jarosław, currently lives and works in Gdańsk.
Helge Lunde – the director of Kapittel, Stavanger International Festival of Literature and Freedom of Speech from 1998 – 2005. In the same period he was responsible for Stavanger as City of Refuge for persecuted writers, and worked together with Norwegian PEN to develop the network throughout Norway and beyond. Mr. Lunde was among the main figures behind establishing ICORN, the International Cities of Refuge Network in 2005. He became its first executive director, a position he has been holding since.
