Editor's Foreword In July 2025, Lisbon was experiencing the peak of its summer with an average temperature of 30°C and long, dry days. The heat felt scorching, even for the Portuguese. On the banks of the Tagus River, however, and benefiting from its breeze, near the Jerónimos Monastery, in a majestic modern building with smooth architecture in light tones, mysteriously welcoming, all the IPA staff were preparing to welcome the nearly 1500 registered participants in its 54th International Congress. And there we were, on the eve of when it all began. On Monday, July 28, 2025, the 33 registered participants in the first Creative Writing Workshop of the IPA in Culture Committee (ICC), conceived by its Chair until that moment and for the previous eight years, Cordelia Schmidt-Hellerau, were preparing to set sail. The courageous sailors of this first voyage were divided into three groups, guided by language: Portuguese (which assumed its status as the fifth Official Language of the IPA at this same congress); German; and English, which also included participants from other mother tongues. We occupied three rooms of that still empty and silent building, in a mixture of pioneering feelings, exploring the world of encounters that would take place there, and of the words and thoughts, from that day to happen, for us, immersed in this Workshop. Cordelia herself led the English group, assisted by the colleagues Elisabetta Marchiori and Johanna Velt; the English group was managed by Andreas Mittermayr; and I guided the Portuguese-speaking group, with the support of my colleague Valeria Riccheri – all of us members of the ICC at the time. The immersion was fruitful, as you will see. The participants readily embraced the proposal devised by our team: “We will provide a first sentence (pre-chosen), and you will have 15 minutes to continue it, thus beginning a story. At the end of which, everyone will suspend writing, wherever it may be. Don't worry about style, grammatical correctness, coherence... Write freely. A bit like in free association.” The instructions were the same for all three groups, as were the prompts (which you will find as the initial sentences of each small text). Here after, you will witness the immense creativity awakened in our participants. Their creations will be presented in the original language and in English, when this was not the original language. The possibility of giving birth to a creative text, whatever it may be – fictional, biographical, historical or a mixture of all this – recording the paths of free thought, is perhaps among the most pleasurable exercises to which the analyst can dedicate themselves. Having assumed the chairwomanship of this committee from this Congress onwards, I had the pleasure of compiling this e-book, which I hope you will enjoy! More than anything, what remains is a memory of that encounter, between unique minds and stories, within the walls of the Belém Cultural Center. Affectionately, Cláudia C. Antonelli Chair, IPA in Culture Committee
4
Made with FlippingBook Annual report maker