Faith in progress is waning, and the sense of community is crumbling. The legacies of older generations are piling up, value systems are being called into question, and as people look at the remaining pieces of the pie, they eye one another critically.
Wealth and responsibility, achievements and losses are being transferred. At stake are questions of power and privilege – and whether they will be preserved or shaken. But who determines the rules of this inheritance – and by what standards is it decided what counts as “right,” “good,” or “just”?

What perspectives do artists, experts, and members of urban society bring to bear when it comes to viewing the present – and how is it haunted by the ghosts of the past? To whom does the future belong? We would like to explore these questions and answers together at the Pochen Symposium 2026 from May 8 to 10 in Chemnitz.

What is the Pochen Symposium?

This three-day symposium serves as an open space for interdisciplinary exchange and critical reflection at the intersections of art, society, and the contemporary world. Here, cultural practitioners and those interested in culture are invited to engage in dialogue.

The program combines various formats: lectures, discussions, and workshops are complemented by performative presentations, guided tours, and engaging opportunities for interaction. This creates a multifaceted, collaborative exploration that brings perspectives together and opens up new ways of thinking.

The aim of the symposium is to highlight central questions, explore thematic spaces, and identify synergies. Local connections to Chemnitz are addressed just as much as European perspectives.

Participating Artists

Susi Bumms (DE) is a freelance media artist who combines conceptual approaches with observation, humor, and unexpected perspectives. Her works depict things that behave: objects with attitude, situations with a shifted meaning, and people with lively fingers. For the symposium, she is redesigning the momentum storefronts.

Gildo Bavčević (*1979 in Split, HR) works in multimedia with a focus on performance and video art. In his work, he addresses political, social, economic, and ecological themes and explores the global impacts of financial flows. With works such as his barbecue performance at the Italian-Slovenian border crossing, he has already toured throughout Europe and is now developing a new performance for the opening of the Pochen Symposium.

Leon Meschede (*1999 in Halle (Saale), DE) is a video artist and essayist. In his work, he explores post-socialist identity and the legacy of the GDR from the perspective of the post-reunification generation. His essay films link technological phenomena with history and society. As part of the Pochen Symposium, his work The Eastgerman Futurists will be shown.

Eva Jiřička (*1979 in Prague, CZ) focuses increasingly on participatory projects, often involving people who are socially invisible – marginalized communities, older people, or children. As part of her lecture–performance for the symposium, she creates a space for encounter, collective exchange, and the sharing of memories and experiences.

Jacek Zachodny (*1969 in Wrocław, Poland) works with installations, objects, painting, video, performance, and public interventions. In his work, he frequently explores themes of memory, the past, and transience; however, his primary focus is on interpersonal relationships. Together with colleagues, he directs the ArtBrut Gallery in Wrocław, where he collaborates with artists with disabilities.

Where does the program take place?

Pochen is hosted at momentum, an independent art and project space dedicated to promoting local subculture and the independent scene. Opened last year by Chemnitz-based artist Béla Bender and his team in the immediate vicinity of the Karl Marx bust, the doors have now been open since April 11 at a new, no less central location in the city center for discourse, exchange, and art.

May 8–10, 2026
Am Rathaus 8 | 09111 Chemnitz

We live in a society of inheritance. This is already true of the simplest, most obvious case: since the 2000s, Germany’s affluent postwar generations have been bequeathing assets worth approximately 250 billion euros each year to their children and other relatives(…) However, today’s society of inheritance is not limited to matters of wealth. Rather, there is considerable evidence that in late modernity, social awareness of being confronted with the legacies of past generations is generally sharpening on various levels.
– Andreas Reckwitz, “On Inheriting,” in: Merkur, vol. 79 (2025), no. 9, (accessed March 30, 2026)

Program Overview

May 8, 2026 – Opening Reception

Starting at 7:30 p.m.
Performance: Gildo Bavčević
Quiz Show: Who’s Going to Get Damn Rich?! [DE]

Who’s Going to Get Damn Rich?! is the pub quiz where you get rich by understanding how others have amassed their wealth. In this quiz show about inheritance, the economy, and tax loopholes, Falk Töpfer invites you to play, inherit, or lose it all over four rounds. Between quick cash, returns, and sleight of hand – somewhere between “die or inherit” – it becomes clear: hard work alone is rarely enough – what matters is knowing how the game really works.

May 9, 2026

10:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
Nothing to inherit? Stay liquid anyway! [DE]
Financial workshop at the breakfast table with Kristin Kubanek

Not everyone inherits wealth – but sooner or later, everyone faces the question of what their own financial future should look like. In this workshop, Kristin Kubanek explains why many people put off the topic of investing and what personal reasons lie behind this. Participants will receive practical tips for addressing their financial prospects in old age, even without prior knowledge.

1:30 – 2:30 p.m.
Among Themselves II. [EN]
Lecture Performance by: Eva Jiřička

Relationships shape our existence and are a fundamental prerequisite for our maturation into fully-formed adults. The project “Among Themselves II” aims to explore interpersonal processes through creative methods. The work is based on individual interviews and the question: How do you imagine your life at a different age or under different circumstances?

3:00 – 4:00 PM
A Piece of the Cake [EN | DE]
A food performance on the theme of inheritance / A food performance about heritage

“Making Heritage” refers to the process of actively shaping cultural heritage rather than merely accepting what is given. We, too, create together, but we focus on “Baking Heritage.” Whether gold bars, coins, or diamonds – participants decide for themselves whether to save for the future or eat the cake right there on the spot.

4:00–6:00 p.m.
What do we take, what do we erase? [EN]
A panel discussion with artists and curators Jacek Zachodny, Leon Meschede, Mariia Vorotilina, and František Fekete
Moderator: Agnieszka Kubicka-Dzieduszycka

More than 35 years after the collapse of the Soviet bloc, Central and Eastern Europe continues to grapple with the legacy of socialism in the context of imperialist Russian ambitions. While in Ukraine, Poland, and the Czech Republic, communist symbols are being removed as an expression of a break with a totalitarian past, Germany tends toward their preservation and critical reinterpretation. How do artists and curators deal with these tensions? How have memory and political transformation shaped their practice – and what do they carry forward as a legacy, what do they leave behind?

7:00–8:30 p.m.
Is That Fair? On Inheritance and Distribution [DE]
Panel discussion with: Justus Geilhufe, Miriam Davoudvandi & Anja Krüger (taz)
Moderator: Alexander Moritz (Deutschlandfunk)

Wealth inequality in Germany is growing, and social tensions are rising. A functioning democracy needs a committed majority that recognizes injustices and stands up against them. What ideas do those affected, churches, and experts contribute to create a more just society in which wealth and privilege are questioned and existing inequalities are overcome?

9:00 PM – 10:00 PM
Jazz Concert: Erich Weinert Studio Band

The Erich Weinert Studio Band sees itself as an open collective in which roles are constantly shifting. The result is songs that are melancholic yet still danceable. Their sound lies somewhere between poetic observations of everyday life and timeless pop music. Featuring: Fabian Skodda (piano), Lydia Pfefferkorn (vocals), and Coward Harpendale (harmonica).

May 10, 2026

10:30 AM – 12:00 PM
Another City Tour [UA | DE | EN]
City walk with: Oleksandra Patlai, Mariia Vorotilina & Ahmed Alsaadi

People create their own forms of belonging in places where they have newly arrived – whether voluntarily or out of necessity. They create spaces of memory, meaning, and care. This city walk invites you to discover Chemnitz from the perspective of migrants. It leads to places full of individual connections and perceptions. The central question is: What is a city’s cultural heritage, and what significance does it hold for people who have recently arrived there?

12:30 PM – 3:00 PM
Modes of Translation [EN]
Workshop with: Yuliia Elyas & Anastasiia Omelianiuk from Ukrainian Decolonial Glossary + Collective reading of the play “Bad Connection” by Iryna Serebriakova

This event combines a group reading of the play “Bad Connection” by Iryna Serebriakova with an interactive workshop that explores how fear, disinformation, and information overload shape the way we communicate and connect with one another. Through role-playing exercises, participants will experiment with new ways to “translate” their experiences and selves in order to build solidarity and foster caring communication.

3:30–5:00 p.m.
In the Books: What Really Remains. [DE]
Reading from the guestbooks of the 2025 Capital of Culture with: Anja Richter, Diana Kopka & Lukas Nagel
Moderators: Lucia Schaub & Ann-Kathrin Ntokalou

What emotions and impressions did the artistic highlights of the past Capital of Culture year truly evoke in the (inter)national audience? The best way to find out – in black and white – is in the museums’ guestbooks, the analog comment section of the art world. Together with the curators, we’ll take a closer look at the loud applause and the quiet murmurs.

5:30–7:00 PM
Of Firewalls and Trench Warfare (Breaking the Deadlock) [DE | UA]
Panel discussion with: Roman Horbyk, Dariia Kuzmych & Dr. Piotr Kocyba

This talk addresses the growing political deadlock across Europe, where polarization and conflict are making dialogue increasingly difficult. By bringing together perspectives from contexts such as the Russian-Ukrainian war and German politics, the discussion views the deadlock as a space for critical reflection.

Starting at 7:00 PM
Elective Affinities [DE | UA | EN]
Culinary finale featuring an Erzgebirge crime thriller

After three eventful days, we invite you to a cozy finale: Instead of a “Tatort” Sunday, we’ll wrap things up with an Erzgebirge crime thriller. Food and drinks will be provided.

Info & Contact

Please check our website www.pochen.eu and our
Instagram account @pochenbiennale for regular updates

Do you have any questions, feedback, or suggestions?
Feel free to email us at info@pochen.eu