Jean-Jacques-Rousseau fellowship
The Jean-Jacques Rousseau fellowship program, founded in 2011, was established in order to provide authors of both sexes with financial support in emergency situations of all kinds, be it political, economic or other difficulties. It is hoped that the fellowship will allow them to pursue their literary activities in improved conditions. The program is being sponsored by a citizen of Stuttgart who wishes to promote contemporary literature with this unique fellowship and prefers not to be named.
Why call a fellowship after Jean-Jacques Rousseau?
Exiled, censored and ostracized, the life of Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712–1778), who paved the way for the French Revolution, was riddled with calamity and failure. His literary and philosophical œuvre champions man’s liberation as vociferously as it makes exclusion from an earthly paradise an inevitable constant.
Last but not least, Schloss Solitude owes its name and function as a place pioneering a return to nature to the philosophy of Jean-Jacques Rousseau, whose principal works »L’Emile« and »Du Contrat Social« were published in 1762, i.e. in the year of Solitude’s foundation. After all, Rousseau was no stranger at the Württemberg court, and carried on a long and lively correspondence with Louis Eugene, Duke of Württemberg, the brother and successor of Charles Eugene, Duke of Württemberg. With this fellowship program, which aims to alleviate emergency situations experienced by contemporary authors, Akademie Schloss Solitude continues the tradition of enlightenment to which it has dedicated itself since its foundation.
Selection procedure
It is not possible to apply for this fellowship.
Selection approach: Each year, the Akademie asks a dozen intermediaries from its international network to submit names of authors they consider in need of support on the grounds cited above. Here, the focus is placed both on the urgency of these individuals’ emergency situations and their qualitative literary talent.
The search for suitable candidates may be limited to a specific country at the discretion of both the sponsor and Akademie Schloss Solitude.
Each year, fellowship decisions are taken by a jury of three, consisting of the sponsor, a representative of Akademie Schloss Solitude and an external member.
Fellowship amount
The working fellowship consists of a financial allowance, and is not necessarily linked to a residency at Akademie Schloss Solitude. Both the fellowship amount and the length of any residency at the Akademie, if desired, will be determined by the jury on an individual basis. The fellowships awarded to date amount to between € 2,000 and € 5,000.
Special fellowship
In the past, Akademie Schloss Solitude has discovered that some radical emergency situations which develop at lightning speed also demand a rapid, non-bureaucratic response. As a result, a fund for short-term decisions has been established in addition to the regular Jean-Jacques Rousseau Fellowship, which can be used for particularly acute cases.
Jean-Jacques Rousseau Fellows
2011
- Luis Chaves, author, San Jose/Costa Rica
- Angelica Freitas, author, Laranjal/Brazil
- Qassim Haddad, lyric poet, Bahrain; the fellowship is linked to a 4-month residency at Akademie Schloss Solitude (Feb–May 2012)
- Simone Kornappel, author, Berlin/Germany
- Christophe Marchand-Kiss, author, Paris/France
2012
- Nguyen Bich Lan, author and translator, Hanoi/Vietnam
- Sahar Mandour, author, Beirut/Lebanon
- Giedre Kazlauskaite, author, Vilnius/Lithuania
- Andrei Ruse, author, Bucharest/Romania; the fellowship is linked to a 2-month residency at Akademie Schloss Solitude (autumn 2012)
2013
- Radu Aldulescu, author, Bucharest/Romania; the fellowship is linked to a 3-month residency at Akademie Schloss Solitude (Oct–Dec 2013)
- Isaac Otidi Amuke, author, Nairobi/Kenya
- Wingston Gónzalez, author, Guatemala
- Brian James, author, Sierra Leone
- Samira Negrouche, author, Algeria
- André & Nathan Trantraal, graphic novelists and authors, South Africa
2014
- Rasha Abbas, journalist and author, Syria; the fellowship is linked to a 3-month residency at Akademie Schloss Solitude (Sept–Nov 2014)
- Kerstin Becker, author, lyric poet, and editor, Dresden/Germany
- Lamija Begagić, author, Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Germán Carrasco, lyric poet, Chile
- Dolores Dorantes, lyric poet and journalist, Mexico and USA
- Do Trong Khoi, author, Vietnam
- Dimitri Kaufman, author, Israel; the fellowship is linked to a 1-month residency at Akademie Schloss Solitude (February 2015)
2015
- Hamed F. Abboud, author, Syria and Austria
- Catherine O’Brien, author, Dublin/Ireland
- Reza Ghassemi, author and musician, Paris/France
- Ahmed Hilal, author, Syria/Turkey
- Ivana Sajko, author, Zagreb/Croatia
2016
- Hamad Hilal, author, Syria
- Lina Attalah, author and journalist, Egypt
- Ahmad Zatari, author, journalist and translator, Egypt
- Emad Al Ahmad, author, poet, and translator, Syria and Turkey
- Marcella Morgan, author and lyric poet, Ireland
- Freddy Sabimbona, playwright and theatre-maker, Burundi
- Yasser Abu Shaqra, author and playwright, Palestine and Syria
2017
- Mayra Oyuela, author, Honduras
- Farhaad Heidari Gooran, writer, editor, and experimental filmmaker, Iran
- Isar Aboumahboub, author, Iran
- Dareen Tatour, poet, Palestine
- Bogdan Coșa, author, Romania; the fellowship is linked to a 3-month residency at Akademie Schloss Solitude (Nov 2017–Jan 2018)
- Dan Naciu, author, Romania
- Noor Dakerli, author, Syria
- Mohamed Saeed, author, Syria
- Mohammad Masaad Asaad, author, Syria and Palestine
2018
- Farhad Babaie, writer, Iran
- Irina Bruma, poet, Romania
- Ebru Nihan Celkan, playwright and writer, Turkey; the fellowship includes a three-month stay at Akademie Schloss Solitude (Jan–Mar 2019)
- Karin Karakasli, writer, poet, and columnist, Turkey
- Mirza Metin, writer and director, Turkey
- Flávia Péret, writer, Brazil
2019
- Matin Abedi, poet, Iran
- Farah Barqawi, writer, Palestine and Egypt; the fellowship includes a three-month stay at Akademie Schloss Solitude (Jan–Mar 2020)
- Lavinia Braniste, writer, Romania
- Medeea Iancu, writer and translator, Romania
- Pınar Öğünç, writer and journalist, Turkey
2020
- Manoranjan Byapari, writer, India
- Amal Kaawach, writer and multidisciplinary artist, Palestine/Lebanon
- Kenan Khadaj, author, journalist and activist, Syria/Germany; the fellowship includes a three-month stay at Akademie Schloss Solitude (Jan–Mar 2021)
- Amahl Raphael Khouri, documentary playwright, Jordan/Germany
- Vahid Vakilifar, director and filmmaker, Iran
2021
- Farnaz Haeri, translator, Iran
- Najwa Sadi Juma, writer, teacher, female activist and translator, Palestine; the fellowship includes a three-month stay at Akademie Schloss Solitude (May–Aug 2022)
- Yang Licai, poet, sound artist and activist, China
- Victor Martinovich, writer, Belarus
- Bhanwar Meghwanshi, writer, journalist and activist, India
- Thorn Nay Soe, writer and director, Myanmar
2022
- Andrii Bondarenko, dramatist, cultural and historical research, journalist, Ukraine
- Uliana Bychenkova, artist, curator, and book designer, Ukraine (March to May 2022)
- Nataljia Klutzscharjowa, writer, Russia
- Oleh Kotsarev, poet, prosaist, journalist and translator, Ukraine
- Victoria Lomasko, artist and graphic novelist, Russia (June to September 2022)
- Kirill Medvedev, translator, poet, musician and activist, and Anna Moiseenko, director, Russia (November 2022 to February 2023)
- Anna Scherbyna, artist, illustrator, and curator, Ukraine (March to May 2022)
- Maryna Smilianets, dramatist, script writer, journalist, and actress, Ukraine (March to May 2022)
- Luda Tymoshenko, dramatist, script writer, artist and lecturer, Ukraine (March to May 2022)
2023
- Yuliia Iliukhas, writer, journalist and columnist, Ukraine (April to July 2023)