On Tuesday, 14 April 2026, the Vice-Rector for International Relations of Pavol Jozef Šafárik University in Košice, Dr. h. c. Prof. Slávka Tomaščíková, together with the Dean of the Faculty of Arts, Prof. Renáta Panocová and the Head of the Department of Germanic Studies, Assoc. Prof. Ingrid Puchalová welcomed a distinguished guest, Dr. Sandra Diepenseifen, Director of the Austrian Cultural Forum in Bratislava. The meeting in the Šafárik Chamber focused on strengthening academic cooperation and cultural connections, but it also included a discussion on how to support the teaching of German and how modern technologies and media can help make literature and other cultural content more accessible to students.
The main highlight of the programme was the opening of the exhibition Writing Against War (Schreiben gegen Krieg). The exhibition was prepared by the Department of Germanic Studies at the Faculty of Arts in cooperation with the Austrian Cultural Forum in Bratislava. It focuses on the life and work of Ingeborg Bachmann, one of the most important Austrian writers and thinkers of the 20th century. It presents her ideas and shows how she explored the theme of war and its impact in her work. The exhibition was officially opened at 2:00 p.m. in the Aristoteles Building of the Faculty of Arts at UPJŠ in Košice, with university representatives, staff, and students in attendance. The exhibition will be open to visitors until the end of April 2026.
Earlier that day, a workshop for students was held at the Austrian Library of the UPJŠ University Library in Košice, led by Assoc. Prof. Ingrid Puchalová. Doctoral students Sofia Bednarčiková and Adrián Reviľak also took part in organising the event. During the workshop, Dr. Diepenseifen presented selected lyrical texts by Ingeborg Bachmann, followed by a discussion in which students reflected on the relevance of the author’s work today.
Translation: Natália Rubeljová
The original Slovak version of the article is available here: https://www.upjs.sk/aktuality/riaditelka-rakuskeho-kulturneho-fora/
