Salon series ‘Après Arbeit. Meet, Greet and Talk Ukraine’
The Ukrainian Institute in Germany is launching a new series of events in a salon format called ‘Après Arbeit. Meet, Greet and Talk Ukraine’. The evenings are an invitation to talk and exchange ideas in a relaxed atmosphere, bringing together different perspectives from the Ukrainian art scene. The events will take place at various locations throughout 2026 with different guests.
Après Arbeit x Ukraine Known Unknown: Beyond Her Lens. Film screening and talk about Sofia Yablonska
When:
16 October, 18:00
Where:
Sputnik Kinobar, Hasenheide 54, 10967 Berlin
Entrance
free with registration
Language
English
The theme of the salon evening:
The fourth salon event is dedicated to the work of Sofia Yablonska, a Ukrainian writer, photographer, and traveller. In the 1930s, Yablonska travelled through Africa, Southeast Asia, Oceania, French Polynesia, New Zealand and Australia, documenting her journeys through photography and film. Her archive contains a small yet remarkable collection of images: over 2,000 negatives and up to four hours of newsreel footage.
During the evening, Veronika Homeniuk will present rare footage from Yablonska’s films and speak about the themes she captured during her travels. She will also discuss the journey of the films themselves, explaining how they survived and travelled through time to reach us today.
The discussion will be moderated by Dr Kateryna Rietz-Rakul, Director of the Ukrainian Institute in Germany.
There will also be a merchandise stand selling books by Sofia Yablonska and other items at the event.
About the speaker:
Veronika Homeniuk is the head of the Sofia Yablonska Foundation, an organisation that works to preserve, research and promote the legacy of Sofia Yablonska. She has been researching Yablonska’s life, work and multifaceted heritage for over ten years.
About the organisers:
‘Après Arbeit. Meet, Greet and Talk Ukraine’ is an event series organised by the Ukrainian Institute in Germany and financially supported by the Federal Foreign Office. The fourth salon event is being co-organised with the ‘Ukraine Known Unknown’ project of the Ukrainian Film Festival Berlin (UFFB) and the Sofia Yablonska Foundation.
This project is dedicated to prominent but still lesser-known figures of Ukrainian culture and art. During the years of Russian colonial policy, repression and cultural expansion, some of these names were banned or forgotten. Through this project, the Ukrainian Film Festival Berlin aims to raise awareness of these artists and create a platform for their work to reach a wider audience.
From 14 to 18 October 2026, the 7th Ukrainian Film Festival Berlin (UFFB) will present the latest contemporary films from Ukraine. This year’s festival theme is ‘Emergency Spaces’. Alongside the main programme, there will be thematically curated film series and programmes focusing on the Donetsk region and the anniversary of Babi Yar. The festival will also screen retrospectives of Ukrainian films and animations from the 1990s, as well as a short film competition. You can find the festival’s programme and tickets on its website.
Geschriebenes & Proklamiertes: Après Arbeit #3 with Serhij Zhadan & Katja Petrowskaja
When:
June 25, 2026, 7:30 pm (doors open from 6:30 pm)
Where:
Literarisches Colloquium Berlin e. V., Am Sandwerder 4, 14109 Berlin
Entrance
free, without registration
Language
German
The theme of the salon evening
On 25 June 2026, writers Serhij Zhadan and Katja Petrowskaja, together with translators Claudia Dathe and Irina Bondas, will discuss authors of Ukrainian modernism. The focus will be on the futurist Mychajlo Semenko (1892–1937), who introduced new literary forms into Ukrainian literature, as well as on a literary journey through early twentieth-century Ukraine that reveals the diversity of Ukrainian storytelling across villages, cities, and periods of social upheaval.
Introduction: Dr Kateryna Rietz-Rakul, Director of the Ukrainian Institute in Germany
Moderator: Natascha Freundel, editor and critic
About the speakers
Serhij Zhadan is one of the best-known contemporary Ukrainian writers, as well as a musician, translator and social activist. He has published twelve collections of poetry and seven novels, and has been awarded more than a dozen literary prizes.
Katja Petrowskaja is a Ukrainian-German writer, literary scholar and journalist who has lived in Germany since 1999. She is the author of the book “Vielleicht Esther” and was awarded the Ingeborg Bachmann Prize in 2013.
Claudia Dathe is a German translator who has translated numerous works from Ukrainian into German, including many texts by Serhij Zhadan. In 2021, she was the first recipient of the Drahomán Prize, which was established in 2020 by the Ukrainian Institute, PEN Ukraine and the Ukrainian Book Institute. In 2022, she was also awarded the Cross of Merit on Ribbon of the Federal Republic of Germany.
Irina Bondas is a conference interpreter, translator and presenter born in Kyiv and based in Berlin. Her work focuses on the fields of culture, the humanities, cultural mediation, as well as politics and social issues. She also works as a teacher and workshop leader and has been conducting research on translation since 2011, with a particular focus on theatre interpreting.
Photos: Ksenia Yanko
Theater & Treffen: Après Arbeit #2 with Tamara Trunova & Thomas Irmer
When:
2 May 2026, 6:30
Where:
Serpen Gallery, (Auguststraße 83, 10117 Berlin)
Entrance
Language
English
The theme of the salon evening
As part of the second edition of our salon series, on May 2, 2026, theatre director Tamara Trunova, Chief Director of the Left Bank Theatre in Kyiv, and Dr. Thomas Irmer, editor-in-chief of Theater der Zeit, will talk about German-Ukrainian theatre networks, current developments in the Ukrainian theatre scene, and the challenges of developing an independent artistic voice while working abroad.
About the speakers
Tamara Trunova is a dramaturg, theatre director, and playwright. She has created more than 30 productions in Ukraine and internationally. Since 2011, she has been working at the Kyiv Academic Theatre of Drama and Comedy on the left bank of the Dnipro, where she has served as Chief Director since April 2019.
Her work has received numerous awards, including the prestigious Taras Shevchenko National Prize of Ukraine (2022) for her production Bad Roads. Other distinctions include the Kyiv Pectoral Award, the GRA Theatre Award, and the Les Kurbas Prize. Her production Bad Roads was also awarded the Audience Prize at the Radikal Jung Festival in Munich (2023). Trunova has also served as a jury member at national and international theatre festivals, including the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.
Dr. Thomas Irmer is a theatre scholar, dramaturg, and publicist. Until 1996, he was a research associate at the Institute for American Studies at Leipzig University. He then served as editor-in-chief of Theater der Zeit until 2003, followed by his work as a dramaturg for spielzeit europa at the Berliner Festspiele until 2006. Since 2015, he has been working as an author and editor for Theater der Zeit, including publications on Frank Castorf (2016) and Luk Perceval (2019).
Salon opening with Yevhenia Kuznetsova
When:
21 March 2026, 6:00 p.m.
Where:
Serpen Gallery, (Auguststraße 83, 10117 Berlin)
Entrance
with registration*
Language
English
The theme of the salon evening
The first salon evening will feature a conversation with Ukrainian author Yevhenia Kuznetsova on what food can tell us about the habits, self-image and history of Ukrainians. Her book Cooking in Sorrow: A Manual for Interacting with Ukrainians and Food will serve as the starting point for a discussion about food culture, identity and life in Ukraine.
The focus will be on Kuznetsova’s subtle observations on culinary habits and lifestyles in Ukraine. The evening will be moderated by the director of the Ukrainian Institute in Germany, Dr Kateryna Rietz-Rakul.
About the author/speaker
Yevhenia Kuznetsova is a Ukrainian author, translator and researcher. She grew up in Khomutyntsi, studied in Kyiv and earned her doctorate in literary studies in Spain. Her novels include her debut Ask Miechka (2022), The Ladder (2023) and Whole Sheep (2024). In her new book, Cooking in Sorrow: A Manual for Interacting with Ukrainians and Food, she offers a subtle, humorous introduction to Ukrainian culture through its food. The book approaches various facets of Ukrainian food and everyday culture in thirty ‘recipes’ and is illustrated by thirty Ukrainian artists.
*Please note that the number of places is limited. Registration is on a first come, first served basis. Once the maximum number of registrations has been reached, further interested participants will be placed on a waiting list.
Photos: Ksenia Yanko
Partners
The series of events is organised by the Ukrainian Institute in Germany and supported by the Federal Foreign Office.