Louisiana Literature festival

Louisiana Literature festival is an annual festival taking place at the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, 50 kilometres North of Copenhagen, Denmark. The festival was started in 2010 and features about forty writers each year. The writers come from all over the world. They perform on stages around the museum and in the sculpture park.

Background

Since the opening in 1958, literature has played a special and vital role at the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art. Throughout the years the museum has welcomed writers and literary events on the same scale as other art forms such as music and architecture. Nordic poetry days have been held at Louisiana, which in the 1980s became a free meeting forum for dissident writers from Eastern Europe. In 1992 Louisiana also saw the first public appearance by Salman Rushdie following his fatwa and subsequent many years of living under cover.

Louisiana Literature 2010

Featuring Naja Marie Aidt (DK), Das Beckwerk (DK), Jens Blendstrup (DK), Suzanne Brøgger (DK), Shane Brox (DK), Kerstin Ekman (S), Tomas Espedal (NO), Tua Forsström (FI), Niels Frank (DK), Günter Grass (DE), Hallgrímur Helgason (IS), Pia Juul (DK), Josefine Klougart (DK), Karl Ove Knausgård (N), Line Knutzon (DK), Eva Tind Kristensen (DK), Martin Larsen (DK), franck leibovici (F), Pablo Llambías (DK), John Ajvide Lindqvist (SE), Mette Moestrup (DK), Pejk Malinovski (DK), Flemming Quist Møller (DK), Henrik Nordbrandt (DK), Sofi Oksanen (FI), Ursula Andkjær Olsen (DK), Klaus Rifbjerg (DK), Knud Romer (DK), Lars Skinnebach (DK), Leonora Christina Skov (DK), Ali Smith (UK), Amalie Smith (DK), Dag Solstad (NO), Jón Kalman Stefánsson (IS), Sara Stridsberg (SE), Morten Søndergaard (DK), Pia Tafdrup (DK), Jean-Philippe Toussaint (B), Kevin Vennemann (D), Theis Ørntoft (DK).

Dramatic monologues were played in the museum's cinema: Primo Levi: If This Is a Man, performed by Danish actor Jens Albinus, and Elfriede Jelinek: Jackie, performed by Danish actor Solbjørg Højfeldt.

A filmed conversation between French artist Sophie Calle and Danish writer Das Beckwerk was also shown at the festival. The subject of the conversation was 'self-burial'.

Audiotour. Writers interact with Louisiana's art and places and their texts are made into audio works available on iPods at the festival. The audiotours are produced by Danish writer and radio producer Pejk Malinovski.

Audiotour 2010 featuring Palle Sigsgaard (DK), Ursula Andkjær Olsen (DK), René Jean Jensen (DK), Pia Juul (DK), Niels Frank (DK), Martin Larsen (DK), Morten Søkilde (DK), Anne Carson (CAN).

Louisiana Literature 2011

Featuring Adonis (SY), Ibrahim Al-Koni (LY), Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (NG), Kjell Askildsen (N), Jonas T. Bengtsson (DK), Alberto Blanco (MEX), Linda Boström Knausgård (SE), Junot Díaz (DO/US), Gyrdir Eliasson (IS), Lars Frost (DK), Rasmus Graff (DK), David Grossman (IL), Kirsten Hammann (DK), Helle Helle (DK), Hanne Højgaard Viemose (DK), Carsten Jensen (DK), René Jean Jensen (DK), Josefine Klougart (DK), Karl Ove Knausgård (NO), Marianne Larsen (DK), Peter Laugesen (DK), Jørgen Leth (DK), Märta Tikkanen (FI), Yiyun Li (CN/US), DBC Pierre (AU), Dy Plambeck (DK), Merete Pryds Helle (DK), Marilynne Robinson (US); Lars Saabye Christensen (NO), Steve Sem-Sandberg (SE), Gary Shteyngart (US); Lars Skinnebach (DK), Julie Sten-Knudsen (DK), Nicolaj Stochholm (DK), Morten Søkilde (DK), Søren Ulrik Thomsen (DK), Kirsten Thorup (DK), Ilija Trojanow (BG/DE), Dorrit Willumsen (DK), Harald Voetmann (DK), Zuli Zeh (DE)

Performances by Klimakrisen (DK), Yoyooyoy (DK), Always Now Slowly (DK), Tre Konger (DK) and Simona Abdallah (DK).

Audiotour 2011 featuring Jens Blendstrup (DK), Junot Díaz (DO/US), Line Knutzon (DK), Kristina Nya Glaffey og Maja Lee Langvad (DK), Pejk Malinovski (DK), Gary Shteyngart (RU/US), Morten Søndergaard (DK).

Louisiana Literature 2012

Featuring Naja Marie Aidt (DK), César Aira (ARG), Kristina Bang Foss (DK), Thomas Boberg (DK), Anne Carson (CAN), Kiran Desai (IND), Kerstin Ekman (SE), Tomas Espedal (NO), Jeffrey Eugenides (US), Simon Fruelund (DK), Christina Hagen (DK), Rasmus Halling Nielsen (DK), Christina Hesselholdt (DK), Alan Hollinghurst (GB), Christian Jungersen (DK), Pia Juul (DK), Anne Lise Marstrand-Jørgensen (DK), Nicole Krauss (US), Mara Lee (SE), Kim Leine (DK), Henning Mankell (SE), Hisham Matar (LY), Mette Moestrup (DK), Henning Mortensen (DK), Nielsen (DK), Stine Pilgaard (DK), Olga Ravn (DK), Cia Rinne (SE), Jonathan Safran Foer (US), Judith Schalansky (D), Amalie Smith (DK); Patti Smith (US), Jens Smærup Sørensen (DK), Göran Sonnevi (SE), Morten Søndergaard (DK), Pia Tafdrup (DK), Linn Ullmann (SE), David Vann (US).

Performances by Cia Rinne (SE), Dråbers Logik (DK), and Morten Søndergaard and Randi Pontoppidan (DK).

Audiotour 2012 featuring Nicole Krauss (US), Kiran Desai (IND), Christel Wiinblad (DK), Olga Ravn (DK), Stine Pilgaard (DK), Eva Tind Kristensen (DK), Mayse Aimo-Boot (DK) and Amalie Smith (DK).

Louisiana Literature 2013

Featuring Anders Abildgaard (DK), Lone Aburas (DK), Peter Adolphsen (DK), Ursula Andkjær Olsen (DK), Johannes Anyuru (SE), Peter Asmussen (DK), Solvej Balle (DK), Suzanne Brøgger (DK), Morten Chemnitz (DK), Christian Dorph (DK), Sidsel Falsig Pedersen (DK), Niels Frank (DK), Katarina Frostenson (SE), Olga Grjasnowa (DE), Einar Már Guðmundsson (IS), Katrine Marie Guldager (DK), Erling Jepsen (DK), Ida Jessen (DK), Janina Katz (DK), Rune T. Kidde (DK), Nick Laird (IE), Waciny Laredj (DZ), Rosa Liksom (FI), Erlend Loe (NO), Svend Åge Madsen (DK), Colum McCann (US), Ian McEwan (UK), Caroline Albertine Minor (DK), Iben Mondrup (DK), Henrik Nordbrandt (DK), Asta Olivia Nordenhof (DK), Sofi Oksanen (FI), Antonio Pennacchi (IT), Per Petterson (NO), Hassan Preisler (DK), Bjørn Rasmussen (DK, Klaus Rifbjerg (DK), Jonas Rolsted (DK), Taiye Selasi (UK), Fredrik Sjöberg (SE), Zadie Smith (UK).

Performances by Jenny Hval (NO), Tomomi Adachi (JP), Olof Olsson (DK) and Martin Ryum (DK).

Audiotour 2013 featuring Tomomi Adachi (JP), Thomas Boberg (DK), Mette Moestrup (DK), Asta Olivia Nordenhof (DK), Dy Plambeck (DK), Mikkel Thykier (DK), Harald Voetman (DK), Yoko Ono (US).

Louisiana Literature 2014

Featuring Naja Marie Aidt (DK), Alaa Al-Aswany (EG), Lena Andersson (SE), Margaret Atwood (CA), Teju Cole (NG/US), Lydia Davis (US), Péter Esterházy (HU), Athena Farrokhzad (SE), Signe Gjessing (DK), Kristina Nya Glaffey (DK), Katrine Marie Guldager (DK), Helle Helle (DK), Christina Hesselholdt (DK), Hanne-Vibeke Holst (DK), Peter Højrup (DK), Roy Jacobsen (NO), Peder Frederik Jensen (DK), Pia Juul (DK), Daniel Kehlmann (AT/DE), Josefine Kloguart (DK), Line Knutzon (DK), Maja Lee Langvad (DK), Lea Marie Løppenthin (DK), Eske K. Mathiesen (DK), James McBride (US); Philipp Meyer (US), Mette Moestrup (DK), David Mitchell (UK), Nielsen (DK), Herta Müller (RO/DE), Kaspar Colling Nielsen (DK), Joyce Carol Oates (US), Dorthe Nors (DK), Dy Plambeck (DK), Michael Ondaatje (CA), Sjón (IS), Jacob Skyggebjerg (DK), Harald Voetmann (DK), Herbjørg Wassmo (NO), Theis Ørntoft (DK)

Performances by 'Vi Sidder Bare Her' featuring Jørgen Leth (DK), T.S. Høeg and Peter Peter (DK), Skammens Vogn featuring Nikolaj Zeuthen (DK), Fire Konger featuring Jim Black (US) and Peter Laugesen (DK).

Audiotour 2014 featuring Lone Aburas (DK), Teju Cole (NG/US), Christina Hagen (DK), Peder Frederik Jensen (DK), Marianne Larsen (DK), Nina Malinovski (DK), Sjón (IS), Theis Ørntoft (DK).

External links

• A report on the festival in 2011: [1]
• A festival recap can be watched here: [2]
• Information about the festival at the Louisiana Museum's website: [3]
• Festival program 2012: [4]
• Festival comment from Patti Smith [5]
• Report on the festival in Politiken Daily [6]
• Patti Smith's 70 min stage talk at Louisiana Literature 2012 [7]
• A festival recap from 2012: [8]
• A festival recap from 2013: [9]
• A report on the festival in 2014, in German: [10]