29 October 2025 press release

Every evening between 3 and 9 November 2025, Leipzig's Panorama Tower ("Uniriese") will be transformed into a monumental work of word art. Titled "Lichtw:orte. Leipziger Lichtlyrik" (Words of Light. Leipzig Light Poetry), extracts of poems focusing on the theme of "flight and refuge" will be visually interpreted and theatrically staged as a light installation in the city's public spaces.

The cooperation between the German Institute for Literature in Leipzig and the German Museum of Books and Writing at the German National Library that was initiated by Professor Kerstin Preiwuß is turning the city’s social hub Augustusplatz into a book that is open to all the world – a place of remembrance, refuge, and the power of language. On 5 November at 18:00, the Mayor of Leipzig, Burkhard Jung, will honour the project with an inaugural speech.

Every evening between 17:00 and 22:00, the façade of the Panorama Tower will be lit up by poetic texts shining over the city like "illuminated memorial blocks". At the city's heart and above its rooftops, they will transform the high-rise building known locally as the "wisdom tooth" into a testimony to the passage of time. Every day, words will be beacons of light in the darkness, shine a spotlight on freedom of expression, illuminate history and place the dark in sharp relief. They will focus on flight and refuge, testifying to the persecution – both past and present – of those who now call Leipzig their home. They take only moments to read, and it will be possible to perceive them in passing. However, the installation also invites viewers to linger and communicate about Lichtw:orte.

Each day of the week will focus on a different topic: from the visualisation of local culture via mass emigration to the experience of otherness, the diversity of language, remembrance of the pogrom on 9 November 1938, and responsibility for memory preservation.

The poems were selected by a panel of Leipzig's poets: Özlem Özgül Dündar, Kerstin Preiwuß, Anja Utler and Sibylla Vričić Hausmann. The project is presented as part of the "More Than a Story. Book City Leipzig 2025" theme year.

A QR code that is also projected takes visitors to the project website (dnb.de/lichtworte), where they will find the complete poems, as well as information about sources and the biographical background of the authors involved. There is also an online guest book where viewers can share their own thoughts and personal response to the project.

More information:

dnb.de/lichtworte

Buchstadt Leipzig 2025

Contact

Background

The German National Library collects, documents and archives all written publications and sound recordings issued in Germany since 1913 together with works in German and about Germany published worldwide; it then makes them available to the public. It offers a comprehensive range of services at its sites in Leipzig and Frankfurt am Main along with digital services that can be accessed all over the world.

With the the German Museum of Books and Writing and the German Exile Archive 1933-1945, the German National Library also has valuable and rich special collections. It regularly organises readings, exhibitions, presentations and concerts to draw attention to its treasures and promotes a culture of books, reading and music with a diverse programme of events.

The German National Library welcomes donations to support its work. Whether for general purposes or specifically for the areas of education, collections, cultural programmes and research - donations help us preserve our national cultural heritage, educate our public in the fields of science and culture, and kindle their enthusiasm. Any support helps!
www.dnb.de/EN/engagement