Events and calls for applications No Images? Click here A bright new year!Each year, a large crowd follows the traditional St. Nicolas procession through the medieval heart of Fribourg. Until recently, it was illuminated only by pale yellow street lamps. Nowadays, St. Nicolas (“Samichlaus”) is the focal point of innumerable flashes of light coming from smartphones. In an impressive exhibition, photographer Pierre-Yves Massot illustrates how time and again this tradition absorbs and adapts to modern circumstances. At Ludicious, the spotlight is on Swiss game designers working on the cusp of fast-moving technological developments, while the Swiss Contemporary Dance Days highlight the country’s vibrant independent dance scene. Bearing such sparks of light in mind, we wish you a happy festive season and a bright new year! Pro Helvetia Communication Click on the image! © BIG-GAME / Pro Helvetia Cultural diversitySt. Nicolas SuperstarAn idol, the crowd and hundreds of smartphones in the air. That’s how photographer Pierre-Yves Massot captured the living tradition of the Saint Nicolas procession in Fribourg. Supported by Pro Helvetia in connection with its «Cultural Diversity in Non-Urban Regions» programme, the exhibition «L’âne, la foule et son idole» (the donkey, the crowd and its idol) contrasts pictures from the archives with contemporary impressions caught by the photographer. The exhibition can be seen at the Cantonal and University Library in Fribourg up to the end of February. The Saint Nicolas procession in Fribourg © Pierre-Yves Massot / TradiFri EventsDANCE Long live Swiss choreography!Once every two years, the Swiss Contemporary Dance Days present a choice pick of the country’s choreographic productions for the benefit of professionals from the national and international dance scene as well as for the general public. The next edition is scheduled for 1 to 4 February 2017 at 12 venues in Geneva. Among the 18 pieces selected by a jury, «Parc National» by Anne Delahaye and Nicolas Leresche takes audiences to borderlines of humanity and creative expression, while «Walking» by and with Gregory Stauffer explores the multiple dimensions of this everyday mode of movement. «Walking», a poetic and metaphysical odyssey, performed by Gregory Stauffer. © Chloé Tun Tun MUSIC Itinerant jazzAcross Switzerland, 25 Swiss jazz clubs host ten up-and-coming Swiss groups for a total of 60 concerts from 14 January to 19 February 2017. In a veritable tour d’horizon, «Suisse Diagonales Jazz» brings to the fore originality and artistic potential and gives young bands an opportunity to make a name for themselves in a linguistic region other than their own. Among the groups selected are the quartet formed by Pauline Ganty from Vevey and NOJAKîN from Berne. Opening night: 14 January, «Turnhalle» in Berne. Suisse Diagonales Jazz, backed by Pro Helvetia, is held in 25 clubs spread among all four linguistic regions of Switzerland. © Suisse Diagonales Jazz Spotlight on Swiss gamesGAME DESIGN The Zurich Game Festival Ludicious kicks off on 26 January at the city’s Kasernenareal. The festival, backed by Pro Helvetia, features conferences, workshops and match-making events, intending to give a boost to Swiss video game designers and help them forge international contacts. It is also aimed at non-professional game lovers, including children. One of the highlights is the «Game technology– inspiring the future» conference organised by ETH Zurich, dealing with topics such as augmented reality and artificial intelligence. TranslationParticipants of the 2016 programme © Frankfurter Buchmesse – Nurettin Çiçek SWITZERLAND Stop-over in Switzerland for young translatorsUnder the auspices of Pro Helvetia and Translation House Looren, ten aspiring young translators will spend 11 to 14 January 2017 in Zurich for the Swiss stage of the Georges-Arthur Goldschmidt programme. The group includes one Swiss translator, Valentin Decoppet from Pully. All participants are set to reap the benefits of a multi-week programme that includes modules in France, Switzerland and Germany. The four days in Switzerland will be rich in encounters with publishers from both the German and French speaking part of the country and with leading figures of the national literary scene. Peter Stamm © Gaby Gerster FRANCE «Weit über das Land»To mark the issue of Peter Stamm’s novel «Weit über das Land» in French («L’un l’autre», published by Christian Bourgois), the author and his translator Pierre Deshusses will speak to audiences at the Goethe Institut in Paris and in Lyon on 9 and 10 January, respectively. Peter Stamm is also due to read from the translation at the Méjanes library in Aix-en-Provence on 11 January and at Maison suisse in Marseille the day after. Stamm shot to fame in the French literary world when his novel «Tous les jours sont des nuits» («Nacht ist der Tag» in the German original) was nominated for the Prix Médicis 2014.
European capital of cultureSounds of AarhusNext year will be a special one for the idyllic city of Aarhus in Denmark as it assumes the role of European Capital of Culture. Sound artist Andres Bosshard from Zurich, winner of the Aarhus 2017 award, has been commissioned with the production of «SonicArk. The sound of the City of Aarhus». The sounds captured in public space will be merged into a major sound composition and presented as work in progress throughout the year. Calls for applicationsARCHITECTURE Competition for the next Architecture BiennalePro Helvetia is, for the first time, selecting the Swiss contribution to the Architecture Biennale 2018 in Venice by means of a competition. For the first round, interested parties can submit a project draft electronically via our application portal myprohelvetia.ch portal. The deadline is 7 February 2017 LIAISON OFFICES ResidenciesPro Helvetia is offering Swiss artists a three-month residency in 2018 in one of the regions covered by its liaison offices. Applications can be submitted for a stay in the Arab world, in India, China, Southern Africa or, for the first time, Russia. Also for the first time, the choice for 2018 includes a studio residency in Big Apple offered by Pro Helvetia in collaboration with the Swiss Institute New York. Applications must be submitted electronically via myprohelvetia.ch by 1 March 2017 at the latest. LITERATURE Book promotionPro Helvetia backs projects aiming to raise awareness and visibility of Swiss books abroad. This promotional tool supplements the support provided by Switzerland’s publishers’ associations for Swiss representatives at international book fairs. Projects must be submitted by 1 March 2017 via myprohelvetia.ch. THEATRE Workshop in MontrealPro Helvetia is, for the first time, launching a call for applications for those wishing to take part in the «Rencontres internationales de jeunes créateurs et critiques des arts de la scène» (International Rendezvous of young stage art practitioners and critics) from 29 May to 8 June 2017, which is embedded in the Festival TransAmériques (FTA) for theatre and dance in Montreal. The «Rendezvous» represents an intensive 11-day event for around 30 young professionals, including daily viewing of performances, critical reflection and exchange, stimulating encounters, workshops and visits to places of cultural interest in Montreal. The deadline for application is 23 January 2017. |