A Glance Into The Prismatic German Pavilion

🖊️Sohini Ganguly and Arpita Roy

Home to classic fairy tales like Snow White, Cinderella and the world's biggest book fair, the Frankfurt Book Fair, Germany plants its literary roots deep. And so, with the IKBF in full swing on its third day, the country, being the focal theme this year, has extended its branches to Kolkata.

 

The interiors of the German Pavilion offer elements too many. Through the entry point, purple and yellow tipped brushes attract the sight to a live wall painting session. A few paces beside lies an exhibition of linoleum prints, a collaborative project of Berlin based artist Cäcilie Hoff and young children of Kolkata. Titled “Fairy tales in Linocut”, the vibrant display full of famous fairytales offers a rabbit hole down the memory lane of Millenials and Gen Z. Right in front of this hides the Kid’s zone, filled with interactive and crafting activities organised by Goethe Institut.

 

The Pavilion offers a plethora of German literature, where books like “Lichtungen” by Iris Wolff, “Die Vere Andel Ten” by Ulrike Draesner and “Stolpertage” by Josefine Sonneson amongst many others catch the eye with their attractive covers.

 

Amidst this what is undoubtedly the highlight of this enchanting stall is its architecture. With the intention of bringing to life a physical manifestation of sustainability, the German Pavilion is a “modular system” of suspended colorful bookshelves that “represents the literal and metaphorical frameworks of knowledge” rising from four structures to meet at the top as the sign of a “plus”. “This project is called ‘Shelf Life’. This whole design is done by Anupama Kundu thinking about sustainability and recycling.” said Sharmistha Sarkar, a moderator of the Pavilion, while conversing about the prismatic structure.

 

The visit to the Pavilion will open up an opportunity to attend a variety of events. Today, “Catch Them Young: Zero Waste & Circular Economy”and “Modern Life is Rubbish” and the book launch of “Zwischen Leben” written by Monica Cantieni, translated by Partha Chattopadhyay commenced there. The book launch touched the Bengali crowd with its apparent relatability with the community. The discussion that followed was a dive into the differences and similarities shared by Bengali and German. Monica Cätieni, the writer, brilliantly narrated a few lines from the book illuminating the beautiful friendship between the two young protagonists. She also mentioned that young adults being her primary audience, aiming to not gatekeep their mindset, she seeked the green signal from the people of that age group. Cätieni spoke extensively about the blend of people from different origin countries that make up the population of her home country, Switzerland. She especially emphasized the rich and versatile literature styles which surround and inspire the readers and writers as a result of that diversity. “We as writers have a responsibility to write stories. It should reach some hearts and it resonates- this is my way of tackling the subjects of stories." she commented when asked if literature truly is a reflection of society.

 

Like every year, IKBF 2025 offers amazing new heights for its visitors where innovation meets creativity in a mesmerizing blend centred around one thing- literature. The German Pavilion is one spot not to be missed during IKBF visit amongst these wonders that stands out for its unique concept and its outstanding execution.