Stories of the streets of London are brought to life in an interactive digital map developed by UCL experts, making it possible to explore the city through the eyes of European writers, artists and intellectuals, through the ages.
Curated by the UCL European Institute, UCL Faculty of Arts and Humanities and the UCL Bartlett Centre for Advanced Spatial Analysis, Lost & Found: A European Literary Map of London showcases texts written in over 20 languages, with each location the site of a real or imagined encounter with London by a European writer.
The map captures and explores the impact London has had on writers such as Danish author Hans Christian Andersen, who in his first encounter with London in 1847 referred to it as "the city of cities", as well as a letter written by Vincent van Gogh, who lived in South London for three years in the early 1870s. Other names include Giacomo Casanova, Karl Marx, Victor Hugo and Joseph Conrad, alongside contemporary authors from Ananda Devi to Cristina Marconi.
A public exhibition based on the map, which launches on 24 October 2023 and will run in the South Cloisters in UCL's Wilkins Building until May 2024, brings to life the online resource in an immersive display, illustrating London's rich history as a hub for cultural exchange.
The exhibition will form the backdrop for a series of associated activities throughout the year designed to inspire critical engagement with the texts on the map, source new entries and stimulate fresh writing on London.
Dr Uta Staiger is the Executive Director of the UCL European Institute and a member of the team behind the map. She said: "This exhibition, and the map on which it is based, encourages us to reflect on London as a place in the European imagination, a capital city where journeys and languages have historically intersected, where people and cultures continue to meet and are transformed.
"It is fitting for UCL to be leading this project given our rich tradition of scholarship on European languages and cultures, our connections to cultural organisations across the capital and the continent, and our status as London's Global University."
Alongside the launch of the map and exhibition will be a new Writer in Residency programme, run in partnership with EUNIC London (European Union National Institutes for Culture), the European Literature Network, the Delegation of the European Union to the United Kingdom, and with the support of Geothe-Institut London. The Residency will commission a contemporary European author to spend four weeks embedded within UCL Arts and Humanities and to produce original writing on London.
With priority given to writers from diverse or otherwise under-represented groups, the aspiration behind this Residency is to diversify both the map and how we collectively imagine and understand both London and Europe. The selected writer will be involved in the 2024 European Writers' Festival and will use the map to inspire young writers at UCL and schools in our local boroughs.
His Excellency Pedro Serrano, EU Ambassador to the United Kingdom, said: "This exhibition and the wider European Literary Map of London project illustrate beautifully the longstanding and enduring cultural connections between the UK and the European continent, and the important role of the written word in building cross-cultural bridges and expanding our collective understanding.
"The EU Delegation is delighted to be working with our partners to deliver the Writer in Residency scheme with a focus on stimulating new encounters with London, and new writing on the city, by writers representing all aspects of society."
Chair of the European Literature Network Rosie Goldsmith said: "London is a great European city. We eat, drink, speak, read and think European in London - a modern reality shaped by a history of immigration, multiculturalism and multilingualism. The European Literature Network fosters cultural, literary and language links between the UK and the rest of Europe. Networking and collaboration are the key to the future of London, the UK and Europe: we're honoured and delighted to support this new venture."
The exhibition launch event will be held at UCL on Tuesday 24 October, 17:30, featuring three speakers: His Excellency Pedro Serrano, EU Ambassador to the United Kingdom; Professor Alan Thompson, Pro Provost (London) and Dean of the Faculty of Brain Sciences; and Lucy Shackleton, UCL European Institute.
