Reading: Leaving Chemnitz?

In 1991, Uta moves to Solingen for a job—intending to stay only a few years. Shortly after the fall of the Berlin Wall, Linda moves away from Chemnitz with her mother and continues to grapple with the question of what remains when so many people leave. For Vân, the far-right riots in Chemnitz were the catalyst for leaving her hometown. Her story intertwines experiences of everyday racism with the history of Vietnamese contract workers in the GDR.
“Leaving Chemnitz?” brings together such stories in the form of documentary comics. The works are based on conversations and explore themes of leaving, origin, migration, memory, and the long-lasting repercussions of the fall of the Berlin Wall.
During the reading, the participating artists will present excerpts and discuss with the protagonists and the audience why people leave a city—or return to it.
The project was created in 2025 as part of Chemnitz’s designation as the European Capital of Culture 2025. All comics are published bilingually (German/English) on rausauschemnitz.de and on Instagram at @rausauschemnitz.
Featuring: Stephanie Brittnacher (comic, reading), Ulrike Jänichen (comic, reading), Magdalena Kaszuba (comic, reading), Linda (protagonist), Uta (protagonist), and Vân (protagonist)