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Europe’s literary links with London revealed through interactive map and exhibition

8 May 2024

UCL Global Engagement is supporting the Lost & Found: A European Literary Map of London project, exploring the city through the eyes of European writers, artists and intellectuals, through the ages.

Woman visiting the Lost and Found exhibition in the UCL South Cloisters

Visit the public exhibition, which brings the European Literary Map of London to life, before 31 May 2024 in UCL's South Cloisters. 

Lost & Found: A European Literary Map of London, developed by the UCL European Institute, UCL Faculty of Arts and Humanities and the UCL Bartlett Centre for Advanced Spatial Analysis, is an interactive digital map showcasing London’s longstanding and enduring relevance for European culture.

For centuries, writers, artists and intellectuals have flocked to London from across Europe and beyond. The map, which has also catalysed a wider programme of engagement activities, explores London through the eyes of its literary residents and visitors. It also reveals how London influenced them and their work, and the imprint these writers may have left on the city.

From the writing of Danish author Hans Christian Andersen, who, in his first encounter with London in 1847, referred to it as “the city of cities”, to a letter from Vincent van Gogh, who lived in South London for three years in the early 1870s, the map features more than 80 entries in over 20 European languages. Also included are contributions from Karl Marx, Victor Hugo and Joseph Conrad, and the work of contemporary authors.

The online map has been brought to life with a public, immersive exhibition. A physical map of London, Spanning the length of UCL’s South Cloisters, locates each site of a real or imagined encounter with London by a European writer, illustrating the city’s rich history as a hub for cultural and linguistic exchange. The exhibition is running until 31 May 2024.

His Excellency Pedro Serrano, EU Ambassador to the United Kingdom, said: “This exhibition and the wider European Literary Map of London project illustrate beautifully the longstanding and enduring cultural connections between the UK and the European continent, and the important role of the written word in building cross-cultural bridges and expanding our collective understanding.”

Against the backdrop of the digital map and physical exhibition, a series of associated activities have been taking place.

A new Writer in Residency programme offers Bulgarian-born author and journalist Joanna Elmy to spend four weeks at UCL as part of a project to support new writing on London from a European perspective. UCL has also welcomed the Luxembourgish writer, director and actress Larisa Faber as part of the programme. Larisa will be working to develop an irreverently multivocal text about the politics of seasonal vegetables – which will feature on the European Literary Map of London as the first Luxembourgish entry.

Run in partnership with EUNIC London (European Union National Institutes for Culture), the European Literature Network, the Delegation of the European Union to the United Kingdom, and with the support of Geothe-Institut London, the programme prioritises writers from diverse or otherwise underrepresented groups. This initiative aims to support new writing on London from a European perspective and diversify the voices represented on the map.

Joanna said: “UCL and the European Literature Network are creating a rare and priceless opportunity for me to engage with specific aspects of my current work while immersed in an environment of culture and knowledge related to London and our broader European heritage. It is also an important step towards broadening our perceptions of the city, the continent, what it means to be European and how literature can help us translate all of this into personal meaning.”

Joanna Elmy and Larisa Faber

The UCL European Institute has also commissioned a range of teaching resources intended to help secondary school students and teachers of modern foreign languages engage with the texts on the map. These resources support the development of speaking, listening and creative writing skills, while encouraging students to initiate conversations around London and other cities they may call 'home', and to explore themes of identity and belonging.

In April, the UCL European Institute welcomed students from the Bobby Moore Academy to the exhibition. Students took part in an interactive session, fostering critical engagement with the featured texts, and prompting student-led reflection on London as a place where journeys intersect, where people and cultures meet and are transformed.

In addition, the map has inspired a broader campaign, #LondonChangedMe, designed to explore UCL students' encounters with London and celebrate the university’s diversity. Students and visitors have left behind their own perspectives on how London has changed them via post-it notes at the physical exhibition or have contributed to the conversation online.

YouTube Widget Placeholderhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e8z_3JHXuvY

 

Looking ahead, the aim is for the exhibition to be transferred to new venues, in the UK and on the European continent, offering opportunities to engage new audiences and partners. As the exhibition run comes to a close in UCL South Cloisters, the UCL European Institute has brokered a partnership with the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office Soft Power team which will support the transfer of Lost & Found to Brussels, Stockholm and Madrid, for events and activities delivered by the UK Mission to the EU and the British Embassies in Sweden and Spain.

Doing so will not only expand the reach of the project but will also allow the team to gather new entries for the Online Map, highlighting the ever expanding cultural and linguistic ties which link London and the continent.

The Lost & Found: A European Literary Map of London project is supported by teams across UCL, including UCL Global Engagement, UCL Innovation & Enterprise, UCL London Office and UCL Grand Challenges.

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