T BODY (OF WORK): FLINTA* LITERATURE NIGHT #8

How can poetry and performance challenge colonial and patriarchal norms regarding beauty, gender, and storytelling? What does it mean to rewrite canonical narratives such as “Venus in Furs” from trans perspectives, thereby blurring the boundaries between author, character, and reader? What are the benefits—but also the risks—of coming out, and what old barriers and new challenges arise in the process? How can comedy and playful expression serve as effective forms of knowledge exchange, psychosocial education, and linguistic innovation? And how can intersections between gender, geography, and identity contribute to more democratic visions of the future?

With Ana Wetherall-Grujić, Yohan Holtkamp, Laura Rosell, and ariel rosé. Moderator: Mary Katharine Tramontana.

GIRL, SHOW ME THAT BODY (OF WORK) is a project by FLINTA*Literatur, Berlin’s platform for migrant and refugee artists identified as female.

In collaboration with Lettrétage, funded by the Senate Department for Culture and Social Cohesion

Contact: kontakt@flintaliteratur.de

Yohan Holtkamp is a poet and performance artist. His texts have been published in various anthologies and journals, including the “Jahrbuch der Lyrik.” He has presented performances at the Trans*Poetica Festival, the auftakt Festival, and in numerous art galleries. In 2025, he was a fellow at the Center for Literature and a visiting lecturer at the Münster Academy of Fine Arts.

ariel rosé (he/she/them) – poet, essayist, author of the books “morze nocą jest mięśniem serca,” PIW 2022 (The Sea at Night Is a Muscle of the Heart) and “Północ Przypowieści,” Znak 2019 (North: Parables). Ariel has published poems and essays in magazines in the U.S. and Europe. Member of PEN Berlin. Two books by Ariel are forthcoming: “Ukraine – A Polyphony” and “ways of swimming / schwimmend” (2026). Rosé is also co-editor of “Both Sides Face East/Durable Words.” (2025) and co-author of a poetry collection in Norwegian (HOF 2026). Transgender, nomad, and swimmer.

Laura Rosell from the U.S. writes about meaning and connection. In her work, she focuses on relationships and emotions, viewing them not only as public health issues but as the foundation of a harmonious society. Laura’s motto is: “The revolution will be gentle.” Through her writing, she aims to educate, empower, and heal. She draws on both personal experiences and her background in social science research and mental health care. Laura’s most creative projects, however, are shaped by a lifelong mystical inclination, in which she explores the transcendent arc of humanity’s healing.

Ana Wetherall-Grujić was born in Yugoslavia and grew up in Tyrol. She worked for many years as a journalist and wrote about equal opportunity, feminism, and pop culture in the column “Prominenter Platz” for the Austrian daily newspaper DER STANDARD. Her debut novel, “Blood Sisters,” was nominated for the Rauriser Literaturtage Prize and won the Glauser Prize for Best Debut in 2025.