An exhibition at ifa Gallery Berlin and a festival at Goethe-Institut in Exile, curated by and featuring the Martin Roth-Initiative’s scholarship holders
The Martin Roth-Initiative is one of the largest worldwide protection programmes for at risk artists and cultural actors. From 21 February to 8 June 2025, a joint exhibition showcases for the first time the work of almost 50 scholarship holders who have found refuge in Germany and were able to continue and further develop their artistic practice with the help of the programme. The exhibition Once We Were Trees, Now We Are Birds, housed at ifa Gallery Berlin, and the festival, at Goethe-Institut in Exile, are curated by former scholarship holders.
The exhibition’s title refers to a local belief from southeastern Turkey’s coastal region, in which doves sing, “Oh my neighbour, oh oleaster tree, once we were trees, now we are birds.” This poetic transformation provides a framework for explorations of belonging, rootlessness and the search for new beginnings in unfamiliar landscapes.
The exhibition Once We Were Trees, Now We Are Birds brings together some 50 positions from different disciplines, such as visual art, performance, literature and photography, addressing issues such as social violence, political suppression, restrictions on freedom of speech and human rights. Among other things, it explores the circumstances leading to loss of homeland and how life changes in a new home country. It includes considerations of current challenges, such as migration policy, anti-Muslim racism and the growth of authoritarian forces.
The exhibition opens at ifa Gallery Berlin on 20 February 2025. Each of the participating artists has designed a poster available for visitors to take home. In a world where digital images and fake news form an endless stream, capturing and sharing subjective testimony in print can be an act of resistance. Posters also have a long history as a medium for information, free speech and artistic activism. On view until 8 June 2025, the exhibition takes up these threads.
The performative counterpart to the exhibition is the festival, which will take place from 6 to 8 June 2025 in the premises of the Goethe-Institut im Exil at the Kunsthaus ACUD. It offers a varied programme with performances, film screenings, discourse events, readings, concerts and DJ sets.
Once We Were Trees, Now We Are Birds invites audiences to reflect on life’s ruptures and crossroads. At best, these turning points become fertile ground for new roots to set, unleashing winds beneath newly formed wings.
Exhibition Curators: Muhammad Salah Abdulaziz, Emrah Gökdemir, Anna Karpenko, Thibaut de Ruyter
Festival Curators: Kholoud Bidak, Emrah Gökdemir, Anna Karpenko, Ludmila Pogodina
