Calendar

In 2026, the Academy for Transcultural Exchange will celebrate its tenth anniversary with a programme of events comprising lectures, discussions, workshops, an exhibition and artistic contributions that shed light on the past ten years and explore the responsibilities of art colleges today. The focus will be on migration, participation, institutional change and the future of transcultural art and higher education practice.

13:00 Welcome
Commission: Academy for Transcultural Exchange

13:15 Dialogue(s)
Ehab Assadi & Rami Hariri: AtA as a beautiful picture: Reflection Session
Beauty is never entirely fixed or universal; that is what we quickly learnt whilst studying at the HGB. In a similar way, the idea of success is often measured against a particular image of the ‘best’. These standards are often not chosen or reflected upon because they stem from a hierarchical framework. But that doesn’t necessarily mean we don’t know how to create a space for collective reflection.
That is what we will be doing in our session: with the benefit of hindsight, we will look back at the journey of the AtA programme, examining both its internal and external aspects. We will share some of our own thoughts and hope to explore the idea of positive progress for the future.

14:15 Break

14:30 Roundtable
Havîn Al-Sîndy & Simin Jawabreh: Resistance from here
Moderator: Mehmet Arbag (Association of Binational Families and Partnerships, iaf e.V.)
What does it mean to be resistant when one’s own resistance is directly linked to a place where war, violence and political oppression prevail? How does resistance change when it takes place from within the diaspora? At a physical distance, yet at the same time in immediate political and emotional proximity?
In conversation with Havîn Al-Sîndy and Simin Jawabreh, we explore forms of resistance at the intersection of art, activism and political organisation. We ask what it means to continue, raise awareness of and help shape struggles from within the diaspora. What forms can resistance take when immediate opportunities for action are limited? Where are its boundaries? What directions can be pursued when one’s own political practice is always linked to the question of what is happening elsewhere? And what does it mean to remain capable of action despite experiencing a sense of powerlessness?

16:00 Break

16:15 Dialogue
Raisan Hameed & Raneem Matouk: This is not an Artist Talk

The workshops are being held in collaboration with the Association for Binational Families and Partnerships (iaf e.V.), which receives funding from the Federal Ministry of Education, Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth as part of the federal programme ‘Demokratie leben!’