Program: Day 1
What the hell are we doing here? Welcome to Drift!
Rewriting the city: psychogeography and (contemporary) literature
May 4 | 18:30-19:15 | Keynote | Studio 1 / Kunstquartier Bethanien
Following on from the anthology published by Matthes & Seitz, , the lecture shows how psychogeography has inspired numerous contemporary authors and artists. It’s about how the concept has evolved since Situationism — from London psychogeography (Iain Sinclair & Co) to contemporary feminist and anti-racist positions (flex collectively, Garnette Cadogan). What makes walking and writing such a relevant topic again in the 21st century?
Post-apocalyptic excursions through Albion. Sebald, myself and others
May 4 | 19:15-20:00 | Lecture | Studio 1 / Kunstquartier Bethanien
No psychogeography without London, no dérive on your own without the pre-school of literature. From Peter Ackroyd to Iain Sinclair, from Stewart Home to Alan Moore, British writers have tried to understand England’s post-industrially and neo-liberally ruined urban space from a psychogeographical perspective. These texts also provide a literary blueprint for testing one’s own psychogeographical excursions. The lecturer follows the excursions of the German writer W.G. Sebald through East Anglia and London, but also reports on his own wanderings through Birmingham or the East End. Searching for Traces in the Post-Apocalypse.
Is psychogeography possible today?
May 4 | 20:00-21:00 | Discussion | Studio 1 / Kunstquartier Bethanien
Uwe Schütte and Anneke Lubkowitz discuss the status and prospects of contemporary psychogeography.