French, German institutes launch annual cultural program in Kurdistan

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – During a prestigious event on the top of Erbil's citadel, the French Institute in Erbil and the German Goethe Institute in Iraq announced on Saturday the Franco-German annual cultural program in the Kurdistan Region. 

"The annual cultural program is not only a result of the collaboration between the French Institute in Erbil and the German's Goethe Institute in Iraq but also envisions a future of Franco-German cultural collaboration within the Kurdistan Region," the program's press release read.

"We are announcing our common French-German program for 2022 of the two institutes," Anaïs Boelicke, Director of the German Institute in Iraq, told Kurdistan 24. "First of all, there will be something every month; we have a full program covering every art, including film, theatre, music, literature, and exhibitions."  

"We started this in 2020 with many musical events, like "Jaz in Erbil," and movie nights, organized at Erbil's citadel, and it is very important for us to continue this program," Agnès Banipal, Director of the French Institute in Erbil, told Kurdistan 24. "This is going to be the first of three other German-French cultural cooperation in the world."   

"We have been given a house on top of Erbil's citadel, where we will open our common German-French Institute to present our activities," Schluwa Sama, Public Relations Coordinator at the Goethe Institute in Iraq, told Kurdistan 24 English. "We will present many activities in 2022, and we will support the local artists from all the different art fields." 

The French Institute in Erbil launched the Kurdistan Region and Iraq's first-ever "Micro-Folie" project on November 14, 2021, enabling people in Erbil to digitally explore thousands of art pieces and paintings from French cultural institutions. 

The exhibition visitors had access to more than 250 masterpieces from major French cultural institutions such as Château de Versailles, Centre Pompidou, Musée du Louvre, Musée Picasso, Quai Branly Philharmonie, national and university museums, and the Grand Palais.

The exhibition was the first one of its kind in Iraq. It lasted for a month.

The French Institute in Erbil is a French cultural institute under the umbrella of the Embassy of France in Iraq. Culture and cooperation are at the core of its mission. The institute is committed to highlighting French and local culture through artistic exchanges, performing arts, visual arts, architecture, literature, and technology.

The Goethe Institute in Iraq is the cultural institute of the Federal Republic of Germany with a global reach. The institute promotes knowledge of the German language abroad and fosters international cultural cooperation.