German Institute for Literature Leipzig

The German Institute for Literature Leipzig (DLL) is a central institution of Leipzig University. Since 1995 it is devoted to the education of German writers. In this missions it succeeds the Institute for Literature „Johannes R. Becher”, which was founded in Leipzig in 1955 and dissolved in 1993.

History of the Building

The institute resides in a bourgeois villa in the Wächterstraße 34, which was erected in 1908 for the owner of a printing press, Johannes Gieseke (1871-1913). In 1916 it was sold to the Jewish family Heine that emigrated from Germany in 1938. The Volkspolizei moved into the building in 1945, and starting from 1966 it served as a recreation home. Since 1995 it is the residence of the German Institute for Literature Leipzig.

Education and Research

A key objective of its study program is the fostering and reflexion of individual literary projects and writing. The bachelor program addresses a broad range of areas in prose, lyrics, and scenic writing. The focus of the master’s program is on developing a project for a novel. To a large extend the education proceeds in hands-on seminars with a focus on the literary work.

The institute is famous for its successful alumni, like Nora Bossong, Martina Hefter, Clemens Meyer, Saša Stanišić, and Juli Zeh.

Outreach

Regularly, the institute can be visited for readings and other public Veranstaltungen.

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