KBF (Kraków Festival Office) and Kraków UNESCO City of Literature are calling for applications from writers and translators from Ukraine and Belarus to apply for their literary residency programme, May–June 2024. The programme is implemented as part of the city project ‘Krakowianki’, dedicated to the role of women and equality.
The matron of the residency is Janina Katz (1939–2013), a writer, poet and translator from Kraków, who was forced to leave Poland in 1969 due to an anti-Semitic campaign. She spent the rest of her life in Copenhagen and was the winner of many prestigious literary awards.
Today, Kraków wants to be a safe haven for women artists forced to leave their countries. The Janina Katz Residency programme for writers and translators from Belarus and Ukraine stems from the belief that Kraków, an open, hospitable city and committed to women’s rights, has a special role to play towards women creators from across the eastern border. The first resident of the programme was Belarusian poet, translator and novelist Hanna Jankuta.
Applicants must have knowledge of Polish or English and they must have at least one published book (fiction or non-fiction), screenplay (film or theatre) or a translated work.
The selected resident will be provided with a two-month stay (May–June 2024) in a furnished residential apartment in the Potocki Palace. Kraków UNESCO City of Literature offer a scholarship of 2,500 PLN gross per month and cover travel costs to and from Krakow. They also offer guests the opportunity to participate in the literary life of the city and support in promoting their work in Poland.
