The term "PostEast" is a self-designation that emerged in 2019 and has steadily gained increasing traction, becoming part of the post-migrant and decolonial discourse. It encompasses, on the one hand, complex interweavings of collective history and experience with regard to the diverse groups from the formerly socialist space, and, on the other hand, with regard to individual multiple affiliations. PostEast makes diversity visible and creates counter-narratives to foreign labels such as "post-Soviet," "post-socialist," or "from the Eastern Bloc."

The exhibition is a collaboration with the initiators of the X3 Collective, Ani Menua and Julia Boxler. Since 2020, the X3 Collective has been working on projects such as X3 Podcast and X3 Spaces deal with the diversity and complexity of PostEast migration histories.

Event program

Panel discussion: “Origin, humor, and hybrid self-images” + X3 live podcast recording
with Ani Menua and Faina Yunusova
Tue, 24.06.2025, 19:XNUMX

In a joint conversation with Ani Menua, Uzbek-born artist Faina Yunusova discusses questions of cultural appropriation, hybrid identities, migration, and transculturality: What exactly does the juxtaposition of these words mean for everyday life and for people who don't want or can't identify with a single identity in their family histories? How do questions of affiliation between the professional and private spheres transform, and what contribution does humor make to dealing with these issues?

The X3 Podcast Since 2020, under the direction of Julia Boxler and Ani Menua, the project has been exploring "PosOst," Eastern European and post-socialist migration discourses, and multiple affiliations. Together with changing guests from academia, culture, and politics, topics such as intercultural positioning, decolonization, anti-discrimination, anti-classism, war, flight, and displacement are discussed.

Faina Yunusova Her practice explores cultural identity, memory, and social narratives in the digital age. Through media such as painting, video, AI, and performance, she reflects on the post-Soviet legacy and the fluidity of belonging between geographical, real, and fictional spaces.

Ani Menua is a writer, artistic researcher, and curator. Her interdisciplinary artistic practice focuses on resistance through language, multilingualism, and artistic intervention. She also translates from Armenian and Russian into German and conceives and curates artistic projects related to PostOst. During the 25/26 season, she co-directs the literary series PostOstCafé at the Maxim Gorki Theater in Berlin.

Admission free, no registration required

The Durak Collective visits Osnabrück: “Durak as political practice”
Fri, 04.07.2025, 19:XNUMX – Unikeller Osnabrück (vaulted cellar)

For more than a year now, a new collective in East Berlin has been shaking up the cards and the community. Monthly evenings dedicated to the card game Durak are organized, inviting competitive and socio-political exchange. Guests alternately describe the collective's events as legendary and insider tips—the Durak Collective is making a name for itself. Here, you can gain insights into the history of Durak, the collective's successes, and self-organization in political practice directly from the collective's co-founders—including important skills that will help you succeed in the game.

Admission free, no registration required

Reading by Ilija Matusko “Evaporation in the Marginal Zone” (2023)
Thu, 21.08.2025, 19:XNUMX 

Ilija's parents run a restaurant in Bavaria. Even as a child, he helped in the kitchen, growing up with fries and deep fryers. Because his father enjoys tennis, he arranges tennis lessons for his son. Ilija finds new friends at the club and, like them, wants to go to high school. His life becomes increasingly disconnected from that of his parents. But something stays with him throughout the years: "It smells like fries, Ilija is coming!" A phrase from a classmate that still haunts him today becomes the starting point for a self-questioning exercise: Does the smell reveal one's social background?

In his debut novel, Ilija Matusko combines personal memories with sociological observations. In ten essay-like chapters, he tells the story of an educational climber – with a keen eye for subtle differences, wit, and literary power.

Ilija Matusko studied sociology and political science. He lives and works in Berlin. He has held fellowships at the Edenkoben Manor House, the Alfred Döblin House, and the Schöppingen Artists' Village. His debut novel, "Evaporation in the Marginal Zone," for which he received a fellowship from the Fritz Hüser Institute prior to its publication, was published by Suhrkamp Verlag in 2023.

Admission free, no registration required

DJ set by Missteikk
Sat, August 30.08.2025, 20, 21-XNUMX p.m.

Originally from Armenia and now based in Berlin, Missteikk has been shaping dance floors with bold and groovy sets that unite people in shared, joyful moments since 2020. As part of the FemmeDecks collective Berlin, she is committed to increasing inclusion in club culture and curating events that provide a platform for femme, BIPOC, and genderqueer artists.

Missteikk is also co-host of the series Brutal Honesty, which focuses on forward-thinking club music. Her sets are always surprising and take the audience on an immersive journey through the eccentric corners of the club scene.

Admission free, no registration required

past events

Exhibition opening “PostOst Re:Vision”
Fri, 23.05.2025, from 18.30 pm

19 pm: Welcome + Introduction

19.15:15 p.m.: Performative reading “I'm glad you're here” by Saša Tatić (English, duration approx. XNUMX min.)

In the performative reading "I'm glad you're here," Saša Tatić explores the emotional and physical dimensions of a life shaped by migration. Drawing on personal experiences of displacement, the central poem unfolds a haunting reflection on belonging, loss, and longing. Between return and departure, the performance explores themes such as identity, home, and the fragmented connections between those who stay and those who leave. "I'm glad you're here" invites the audience to a sensitive exploration of collective and individual experiences of the diaspora—and poetically questions the idea of ​​a fixed place in the world.

20 p.m.: Performance “Unskinned” by Ksti Hu x Trevor Doherty

I have to remove my skin,
that was given to me,
to get to the fur.
No one is there to question.
I am not here to touch or fill.
I am now —
and I cannot remember what was long forgotten.
I will not give up.
Because the pain holds me together.

Free entry!

Lecture by Daniel Heinz: "Post-East, Post what? Perspectives of a migrant self-designation" 
Thu, 12.06.2025, 18:XNUMX

What does "PostOst" mean? For whom is this self-designation empowering – and for whom is it not? Daniel Heinz (IMIS – Institute for Migration Research and Intercultural Studies, University of Osnabrück) invites you to an interactive evening that combines personal experiences, political analyses, and creative approaches. The starting point is the discourse initiated in 2019 by PostOst-Migrantifa in Berlin: a movement that makes migrant, queer, and anti-fascist perspectives visible – beyond attributions, prejudices, and one-size-fits-all narratives.

The event offers an insight into the history and present of community work, self-organization, and tensions within the post-East scene – including an examination of topics such as Russian aggression, coloniality, homophobia, and exclusion within one's own structures.

Instead of a traditional frontal lecture, participants can expect an open, experience-based and participatory format that invites them to reflect on belonging, language and resistance – and to dream together of new possibilities for empowerment.

Admission free, no registration required

presentation by Lisa Jarzyński: “Anti-Slavism and Sexism – The Figure of the ‘Eastern European’ Woman”
Wed, December 18.06.2025, 19, XNUMX:XNUMX am

If you enter the words 'Eastern European woman' into a search engine, the following search results are suggested, among others: dating portals, women in catalogs, porn categories, precarious employment. These stereotypes are also present in pop culture and our everyday lives and are deeply woven into our society. What stereotypes exist, where does this 'Western' power fantasy come from, and is there a historical continuity to the devaluation and exploitation of the region and the people of Eastern Europe?

Admission free, no registration required

With friendly support