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Syrian refugee children arrive in Hanover. Source: Reuters
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Weekly Poll
Would data privacy concerns deter you from using a coronavirus contact-tracing app?
YES NO NOT SURE
Last week, we asked if Germany had turned a coronavirus corner.
57% of you answered 'yes'.
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Arts & Culture
Art from Home Week 4: a virtual trip to the Met’s Gerhard Richter exhibition
A major retrospective of one of the most celebrated contemporary German artists, Gerhard Richter, had just opened at the Met Breuer in New York before lockdown commenced.
Luckily for us, the museum has converted the exhibition into an online portfolio, complete with all the individual works’ placards and photographs of their positioning on the walls of the gallery. It’s an immersive experience, particularly if you start with the Met’s ‘Primer’ page, a digital platform full of information about the artist. Along with Sigmar Polke, Richter spearheaded the Capitalist Realist movement, a play on Socialist Realism, the style of art produced principally by GDR-era ‘official’ artists. Capitalist Realism was imbued with overtones of social and political criticism, which generally went further that of the parallel movement of American Pop Art.
The museum has also released a 2012 documentary on Richter, which was praised by the New York Times. It’s available to stream for free until July, watch it here.
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The trailer to 'Gerhard Richter Painting' (2012), available to view in full on the Met Museum's website. Source: YouTube
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Austria
Coronavirus
SPÖ party leader Pamela Rendi-Wagner has urged for a gradual ‘return to normality’ in the medical sector. She pledged for general surgeries to be re-opened so that non-coronavirus patients do not become ‘second-class patients’. Starting from Monday, hospitals in Vienna will proceed to tackle the over 2,000 surgeries that were postponed due to the emergency.
Politics
According to latest opinion pools, the Austrian People’s Party (ÖVP) has registered an increase of 9 percentage points, almost reaching an absolute majority (48%). The Chancellor’s party is followed by the SPÖ and the Greens (16%), the FPÖ (13%) and NEOS (3%).
Culture
The Salzburg Art Association (Salzburger Kunstverein) has launched an online programme of virtual exhibitions and events, including the international project Isolation TV, which showcases creative work on self-distancing and isolation.
Literature
The Austrian Book Trade Federation (Hauptverband des österreichischen Buchhandels) is currently hosting a series of video conferences called ‘Exceptional Talks’ (Ausnahmegespräche) in which contemporary Austrian authors present their new books.
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Germany in the UK
Deborah Feldman, the woman who inspired Netflix series Unorthodox, reveals how she believed Germany saved her from the historical burden of the Holocaust. The article in The Daily Telegraph can be found here.
The gripping TV series Babylon Berlin is perfect lockdown viewing for those who enjoy dark and compelling drama. Find a review of the Sky Atlantic show here in The Guardian.
Life inside the infamous Bergen-Belsen concentration camp was revealed in a new BBC 2 documentary broadcast last week. The link can be found here.
Benjamin Quaderer will read from his new book ‘Für Immer die Alpen’. It’s a thrilling depiction of the darker side of Litchenstein drawing attention to its controversial financial laws and the human impact of being a whistle blower. Watch live at CEST 20:00 on Monday 20 April (tomorrow) here.
Also look out for the Institute of Modern Language Research London’s podcast on the book, which is released on 30 April.
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Music
Song of the week is: Geile Zeit by Lockvogel and Meltem (2016)
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Word of the Week
(die) Zeit totschlagen
Phrase: to kill time
This idiomatic colloquialism literally means ‘to strike time dead’. It refers to the act of doing something to pass the time or to avoid boredom.
- Da ich alle Folgen von ‚Türkisch für Anfänger’ gesehen habe, muss ich jetzt die Zeit mit Lernen totschlagen. = Because I watched all of the episodes of 'Türkisch für Anfänger’ [Turkish for Beginners, a German TV series], I now have to kill time by studying.
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