The Velvet Revolution Conference
02.12.2019 / 03:58 | Aktualizováno: 02.12.2019 / 04:37
CECO in cooperation with the National Chengchi University held a workshop entitled The 30th Anniversary of the Velvet Revolution: From the viewpoints of literature, society and history. The workshop took place on 26 November 2019 and it was preceded by the opening of The Good 100 exhibition and the Jan Palach film screening.
Our office together with the Department of Slavic Languages at NCCU organized a conference at the occassion of the 30th anniversary of the Velvet Revolution, where numerous respected scholars specialized in Central European Studies delivered their presentations. The keynote speaker was prof. Peter Steiner of the University of Pennsylvania, who is the author of the book The Deserts of Bohemia. His contribution was entitled The Unsung Hero of the Velvet Revolution: Václav Havel´s Greengrocer, and it puts the figure of the greengrocer into the historical context, while arguing the significance of the second economy.
Illustrator and professor Renáta Fučíková was another distinguished guest of the workshop. She introduced the work of her students on the theme of the revolution called Velvet Effects. The other speakers were NCCU, Soochow University or Formosa University professors, whose contributions analyzed the post-revolutionary developments from the perspective of sociology, history and literature. The workshop provoked an engaged discussion and was attended by approximately hundred listeners. The collected works were published as the conference proceedings.
The Good 100 exhibition was opened before the conference. The paintings are the works of the students of the Ladislav Sutnar Faculty of Design and Art (University of West Bohemia) supervised by Renáta Fučíková. At the opening, she lead the guests through the exhibition, commenting on the paintings depicting the hundred years of the Czechoslovak and Czech history in extraordinary acts, events and successes within ordinary life.
In the eve of the workshop on November 25, we screened the movie Jan Palach by director Robert Sedláček. Opening remarks introducing the historical context were delivered by prof. Melissa Lin, who teaches Czech language and literature at NCCU.
We wish to express our gratitude to all, who collaborated with us on this immense and challenging project, namely to prof. Lin and the Department of Slavic Languages and to prof. Renáta Fučíková and Vice-Dean Chochole from the University of West Bohemia. We also thank to all students who created the exhibition in the Czech Republic and to those, who visited it in Taipei.
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