European day of languages

Thursday, 24.09.2015 – Saturday, 26.09.2015

Literature

The European Union National Institutes for Culture (EUNIC) group in Delhi will organize a day of European languages to showcase Europe’s multilingualism. Several fun language learning activities are planned with presence of country stalls, quiz, students’ music groups, author readings, and express foreign language classes.

Switzerland will participate at this event to promote the multilingual aspects of Switzerland and, in particular, the Swiss-Italian language, its literature and culture. The Embassy and Pro Helvetia Swiss Arts Council have therefore invited the Swiss Italian poet Mr. Andrea Bianchetti.

Gaurav Monga, a teacher of German as foreign language and a young author, will further conduct walks while reading Robert Walser’s writing. Robert Walser is a Swiss German author of the 19th century. These “Robert Walser walks” will be followed by creative writing workshops.

Other organizing partners of the European day of languages are the Italian Cultural Centre, the Goethe Institut Max Mueller Bhavan, the Spanish Cultural Centre, the British Council, the Alliance Française, and other EUNIC members such as Poland, Hungary, Austria, and Portugal.

Poetry reading and performance

Swiss Italian poet Andrea Bianchetti reads from his poetry collection “Estreme Visioni di Bianco”, accompanied by a performance by Ledwina Constantini.

24 September 2015: 11.00 am, Workshop with students at Delhi University
24 September 2015: 05.00 pm, Workshop with teachers of Italian at Jamia Millia Islamia University in collaboration with the Italian Cultural Centre
25 September 2015: 6:30 pm, Instituto Cervantes, September Night of Literature
26 September 2015: 4:30 pm, Amphitheatre, Cyber Hub, Gurgaon (open to all)

Wanderungen mit Robert Walser (“Robert Walser walks”)

While reading Robert Walser’s peripatetic writing, one almost feels convinced that the narrator is not only telling a story about a walk but is actually walking. In this creative writing experiment, Gaurav Monga takes people for walks, performing excerpts from Robert Walser’s prose. This will culminate into a creative writing exercise exposing each walker’s own subjectivity. We will understand how the landscape and surrounding world is largely in our own minds.

26 September 2015: Gaurav will conduct five walks with minimum 10 participants post 300 pm. Spot registrations at the Embassy of Switzerland stand. 

About Andrea Bianchetti

Andrea Bianchetti (1984) lives in Sorengo, Switzerland. He is an Italian literature teacher in High School in Ticino. He graduated in German literature at Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore in Milan and obtained a masters degree in Italian literature at Università della Svizzera Italiana (USI) in Lugano. In 2007, he published his first book of poems Sparami! Amore di cera, (Viganello, Alla Chiara Fonte, 2007) and, in 2012, a second book of poems Estreme visioni di bianco (Viganello, Alla Chiara Fonte, 2012). In 2013, he published his third book, Carneficine (Locarno, Ana edizioni, 2013), which is a single composition of one long poem.. Carneficine inspired a theatrical performance of Opera retablO directed by  Ledwina Costantini. Andrea Bianchetti also edits  the literary magazine «Cenobio» and collaborates with the Swiss Italian Radio (RSI) as commentator of new books. In 2015, he won the Pro-Helvetia prize for his new project titled Gratosoglio.

Write to us for more details: ndh.events@eda.admin.ch

Location: New Delhi and Gurgaon