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German cultural exchange institute returns to Houston after 25 years
After 25 years, the Goethe-Institut returns to Houston full-time.
After 25 years, the Goethe-Institut is reopening a permanent office in Houston to promote cultural exchanges between Texas and Germany.
“The USA remains Germany's most important partner outside the European Union,”emphasizes Johannes Ebert, Secretary-General of the Goethe-Institut. “With the opening of our Houston location, we are sending a clear signal about the importance of the transatlantic partnership. With 30 million inhabitants, a dynamic economy, anda diverse educational and cultural landscape, Texas is an ideal location for deepening cultural dialogue with the United States and providing new impetus.”
Goethe-Institut Houston will officially open at their new office at POST Houston (401 Franklin) on October 3, which is also the 35th anniversary of the reunification of Germany after the fall of the Berlin Wall. Secretary General of the Goethe-Institut, Johannes Ebert, will be in attendance for the grand opening at 5:15 pm. He will present two parts of the new national "Among Friends" program, which aims to spread German language, music, art, and literature. Authors Sonali Beher and Iven Yorick Fenker from the German Literature Institute in Leipzig will read, and German and Texan journalists will discuss “Cohesion and division in uncertain times."
Tickets for the event are free, but registration is encouraged by visiting goethe.de/Houston.
“With ‘Among Friends,’ we are engaging in dialogue with local people who have had little contact with modern Germany,” explains Johannes Ebert. “We are building long-term partnerships for sustainable cultural work across the United States, thereby contributing to the strengthening of transatlantic relations."
Technically, Goethe-Institut Houston will be a part of the Chicago branch, but will use the office to promote events across Texas, where many German immigrants founded towns. There was a permanent office in Houston until 2000, when Goethe-Institut shut down many locations across the U.S. due to budget cuts. However, Goethe-Institut continued to bring German programming to the city, mostly through pop-up events such as showing famous German films. These were often done in conjunction with local art institutions. Goethe-Institut Houston says if hopes to continue using the vast, symbiotic networks it has developed over the last quarter-century to present new programming, in addition to events at their offices.
