Iranian-German writer, essayist and artist Jina Khayyer presents her award-winning debut novel In the Heart of the Cat, a personal and poetic story about love, freedom and belonging. Inspired by the protests in Iran following the death of Jina Mahsa Amini, she traces memories of her own experiences in the country, from family hospitality and a secret love to the 2009 Green Movement protests.
In conversation with translator, writer and journalist Nazila Kivi, she discusses what it means to be a woman, courage and solidarity, and a heritage you cannot simply shake off. The talk is held in English. Alongside the event, a selection of her poems and drawings is on display, previously shown at Kunsthalle Baden-Baden as part of the group exhibition SEA AND FOG (2024).
Khayyer paints in Persian, a language she speaks but does not write, and weaves her images together with poems in German, English and French, exploring identity, belonging, anger, grief and love.
