The Litfaß Column and Morris Column appeared almost simultaneously in Berlin and Paris, becoming the recognizable symbols of both cities in the 19th century. Posters stuck randomly became the beginning of a brilliant idea: the publisher Litfaß and the Parisian printer Morris came up with a special construction for distributing advertising posters and announcements with the information that was important for the city. In today’s German and French cities, the still-standing columns are used mainly for announcements of cultural events and news about the life of communities of particular city districts. However, they have retained one function for more than 160 years: they are well-known meeting places.
At the Book Arsenal Festival, as well as at the events in Mariupol and Sumy, the Morris Column/Litfaß Column will also become a meeting place for everyone interested in the German and French contemporary literature.
Colonne Morris-Litfaßsäule (“Morris Column” for short) is a French-German project that promotes reading and dialogue through literature. It will be held mainly in the east of Ukraine, in the cities located close to the Russian border, such as Sumy or Mariupol that is very close to the conflict zone. With the support of the German-French Cultural Foundation, the French Institute and the Goethe-Institut in Ukraine want to integrate the open library into the public space during stops in particular cities.
The Morris Column will be presented at the Book Arsenal Festival, the country’s biggest literary event. Visitors will be able to approach the column to look through novels, essays, informational publications about Germany and France, as well as comics, graphic stories and children’s books. In addition, one will be able to meet with German and French authors and artists near the column.