Postcards for the Unknown: Regional writer starts in Münsterland on 1 March

What do you write to strangers on a postcard? That is the initial question with which regional writer Neïtah Janzing begins her four-month "residency" in Münsterland on 1 March. She was chosen in the third edition of the state-wide literature project "stadt.land.text NRW" to track down stories and put the region into literary words. She is supported by the Münsterland e.V. cultural office.

Neïtah Janzing is 25 years old and was born in Canada. In 2019, she emigrated to Berlin and joined the network of French-speaking female authors there. As part of her "letter projects", she invited participants to write letters to people they did not know. She already tested the format in the Czech Republic and Germany and is now developing it further for her residency: in Münsterland, she creates postcards from her photos of the region and sends her impressions in a few words to strangers.

"For me, there is a special tension between the anonymity of sender and receiver and the intimacy of the words I share with strangers," says Janzing. "These can be impressions of Münsterland or encounters, but also literary reflections." In the course of her residency, she would like to collect addresses of locals who would like to receive mail from her - in French or English.

Until now, Janzing has never been to Münsterland. During her research from Berlin, she was particularly inspired by a little international star from Münster: Felix the rabbit. "I really liked the stories about Felix the rabbit, who travels the world and writes letters to his girlfriend Sophie, and they made me curious about his 'home'," says Janzing. "And if I could, I would very much like to meet the author Annette Langen one day." But the landscape, the castles and palaces and the many green spaces in Münsterland also drew Janzing to the region - and perhaps also reminded her a little of her time "in the deep country" in Canada.

Janzing creates the motifs for the postcards herself, as well as the paper. "By making the paper I get a feeling for different textures and aspects of visual art also flow in through the photos. Each postcard is unique," the author emphasises. Some of her texts and works are presented online at www.stadt-land-text.de, on Janzing's Instagram channel "letters-projects" and live at readings and performances throughout North Rhine-Westphalia.

During her stay, she will live in the artists' village Schöppingen, where she can exchange ideas with 15 other artists. The Kulturbüro Münsterland at Münsterland e.V. will support her during her residency. "For me, the exciting thing about Neïtah Janzing's concept is the artistic approach, which goes beyond literature," says Andre Sebastian, head of the cultural office. "The graphic and handcrafted design of her postcards in combination with her words, which also come from different languages, is something special."

Note to editors: If you would like to be informed if the regional writer is in your area or visits your place, please feel free to contact Eva Stannigel (02571 94 93 04, stannigel@muensterland.com).