St. Petersburg Nordic Weeks 2018
Nordic Weeks 2018 has kicked off
The Nordic Weeks 2018 take place in St. Petersburg from September 15th to October 20th. The program of the festival includes a wide variety of events & themes. Nordic perspectives are explored in the fields of film, music, architecture, literature, history and more. This year the festival is arranged for the ninth time and is united under the common topic of “Neighborhood”.
As the name implies, the St. Petersburg Nordic Weeks festival is a collection of activities showcasing the arts, culture, and experiences of the Nordic countries for the people of the great Russian city, and promoting Nordic cooperation. The project is organized by the Consulates General of Finland, Norway & Sweden in St. Petersburg, the Embassies of Iceland & Denmark in Moscow, the Danish Cultural Institute & the Finnish Institute in St. Petersburg. The festival has been returning to North-West Russia since 2010.
Nordic Weeks 2018
With the theme of neighbourhood, Nordic Weeks 2018 underlines the many things the Nordic countries and St. Petersburg share: we are connected by the sea, a shared history, a way of life, and a mentality rounded by the northern climate. From this common foundation we can build new shared experiences and new knowledge. This is why the program of Nordic Weeks does not just contain movie screenings and presentations of other kinds of artistic output, but also workshops, professional meetings, and other networking and knowledge-sharing activities.
The full official program spans more than 40 events. Below is an overview of the ones involving Danish participants directly.
Bjarke Mogensen at Sheremetev Palace
As one of the lead-ups to the official program, on September 14th, Danish accordionist Bjarke Mogensen played a concert at Sheremetev Palace together with the Avantgarde Quartet. Two days earlier he had performed at the Alvar Aalto library in Vyborg.
A Message to Man – documentary film festival
From September 16th-19th, illuminating documentaries were shown, from all involved countries. The Danish contribution was Slette omstændigheder (Bad Circumstances) (2018), by Max Kestner.
Experience your Europe at the Hermitage
At the State Hermitage Museum, a joint Nordic stall will be a part of the “Experience your Europe” festival. The festival is held in connection with the European Year of Cultural Heritage and takes place on September 22nd.
Comic exhibition
Opening on the 27th of September, is a colorful exhibition of contemporary Nordic comics, running till the 15th of October. During this runtime, a series of workshops and meetings with the creators will take place. One of the artists visiting St. Petersburg is Danish Karoline Stjernfelt, who will look by the local DCI, besides making her appearance at the exhibition.
Colloquium on children’s literature
Experts will discuss the experience of reading, in a context of literature for children. The talks will happen on the 28th and 29th of September, and will include public lectures as well as professional forums. Nina Christensen, Associate Professor and Centre Director of School of Communication and Culture – The Centre for Children’s Literature, Aarhus University, will attend.
Waterfront Forum
One of the larger projects in recent years, involving DCI, is Waterfront, springing from the project ”Strengthening Nordic-Russian network in ecological advocacy”. It is an eco-urbanistic project built around international study trips, exploring different cities’ way of approaching sustainable renewal of harbor areas. From October 4th-7th, the latest installment of the ongoing project will be realized, with three days of informative discussions on issues of urban development.
Nordic Cinema
Beginning October 11th and ending the 14th, is a festival showcasing five exceptional, recent Nordic movies. The acclaimed movie Vinterbrødre (Winter Brothers) (2017) by Hlynur Pálmason will represent Denmark.
Roundtable with Readers’ Editor
Bjarne Schilling, Readers’ Editor at “Politiken” and President of the Organisation of News Ombudsmen & Standards Editors, will sit down for a roundtable, October 19th.
Children’s rights in Denmark and Nordic Happiness
Senior Researcher at The Danish Institute for Human Rights, Anette Faye Jacobsen, will take part in activities on both the 19th and 20th of October. She will give a lecture about dilemmas concerning children’s rights in Denmark on the first day. The day after she will partake in a talk about Nordic happiness, with several other experts and writers from the Nordic countries.
See the full program for Nordic Weeks 2018 here (russian)
