Call for contribution: ‘I was, I am, I will be!’: 100 year anniversary of Rosa Luxemburg’s death

‘I was, I am, I will be!’

These words were the last words of the German Marxist theorist and revolutionary socialist Rosa Luxemburg before her assassination on January 15^th, 1919. This year, 2019, marks the 100 year anniversary of Rosa Luxemburg’s death. During her lifetime, Rosa Luxemburg wore many hats: She was a radical revolutionist, a convinced pacifist, an outspoken feminist, an influential leader in the Socialist International and – last but not least – a life-affirming woman.

On the occasion of the 100th anniversary of her death, the Rosa-Luxemburg-Foundation-Beirut is organizing an art competition on the person, the life and the ideas of Rosa Luxemburg.

‘I was, I am, I will be!’ wants to encourage students in the field of visual arts to deal with the person and work of Rosa Luxemburg and display it in any visual art form that suits them (photography, painting, filmmaking, comic, sculpture).

Participants can choose between the three following topics that reflect the versatility of her life and work:

1. Rosa Luxemburg’s Letters from the Prison:

Rosa Luxemburg spent three years and four months in German jail during WW I. An attempt to silence one of the loudest and bravest voices for peace in a time most of Germany was longing for war. During her time in prison, Rosa wrote many letters to friends, comrades and family displaying her thoughts and daily life during her time in prison.

Students choosing this topic are encouraged to take inspiration in the letters Rosa Luxemburg wrote during her time in prison.

1. Rosa Luxemburg and the Revolution:

“The revolution is great, everything else is quark”.

Rosa always defended the necessity of a popular revolution as the only way to liberate the working people. In January 1919, the Marxist “Spartakus League” founded by Rosa organized the Spartacus Uprising, a general strike in Berlin. The aim of the rather small scale uprising was to lead into a full scale revolution similar to the Russian example. In the aftermath of the uprising, Rosa was killed.

Students choosing this topic are encouraged to reflect either on Rosa Luxemburg’s life as a revolutionary and/or on her thoughts on revolution

1. Rosa Luxemburg and Feminism

Rosa lived a life of emancipation. Being denied the possibility to study at university as a woman in Poland, she left to Zurich by herself. After engaging in the scene of exiled socialists and learning about the social-democratic party of Germany she left Zurich to participate in the Social Democratic Party in Berlin. On the other side, her writings did not focus on women as a separate group. While she emphasized the hardship of Women of Color in the colonies and praised the accomplishments, proletarian women achieved through their struggle, she ridiculed bourgeois feminists as parasites.

Students choosing this topic are encouraged to engage with the ambivalence of Rosa Luxemburg’s writing on feminism and her life as self-determined women.

The timeframe of the exhibition is 6th months, starting August 1st. Regular meetings will be scheduled with the participants to talk about the progress of their work.

The contributions will be exhibited in Beirut and Berlin during 2019 (exact dates will be announced at the launch). The three best contributions will be rewarded with a travel to Berlin for attending the opening of the exhibition as well as visiting the headquarter of the Rosa-Luxemburg-Stiftung and places of Rosa’s life in Berlin.