Die „Frau als Mensch“ zwischen Comic und Gesellschaft: ein Abend mit Ulli Lust

In the organizer's words:

Ulli Lust was already a guest at the Berliner BücherFrauen with her first major comic story "Heute ist der letzte Tag vom Rest deines Lebens", as well as part of the women's comic collective Spring. In addition to reading from the comic works, it was always also about tracing the situation of women in the German comic scene and taking a look at the working and production conditions. We want to maintain this mix of reading and discussion this evening. With her latest work "Die Frau als Mensch", published in two volumes by Reprodukt, Ulli Lust has succeeded in venturing into completely new areas of perception as far as comics and feminist issues are concerned. Perhaps it is the combination of both. In any case, she is the first female comic author to win the German Non-Fiction Prize. Non-fiction comics are becoming increasingly popular, so it seems only logical that they are now also being recognized by a scene that is not primarily considered to have an affinity for comics. How does such recognition affect your own work practice? Why does feminist self-image translate so well into comics? What changes have there been in the German comics scene in recent years? We want to talk about these and other questions with Ulli Lust on this evening. In between, the author will read from her two comic volumes "Die Frau als Mensch". An event as part of the Feminist Book Week 2026 of the BücherFrauen network. (www.buecherfrauen.de)

Ulli Lust, born in Vienna in 1967, is an Austrian comic artist and illustrator. Her comic "Heute ist der letzte Tag vom Rest deines Lebens" (avant-verlag) received a lot of international attention and was awarded the Ignatz Award and the Los Angeles Times Book Award. This was followed by "Flughunde" (based on the novel by Marcel Beyer) and "Wie ich versuchte, ein guter Mensch zu sein" (both Suhrkamp). Her non-fiction comic "Die Frau als Mensch: Am Anfang der Geschichte" was published in 2025. This was the first comic ever to be awarded the German Non-Fiction Prize. The eagerly awaited follow-up volume "Die Frau als Mensch 2: Schamaninnen" was published in 2026. Ulli Lust is one of the most important German-language comic artists. She teaches drawing and comics at Hanover University of Applied Sciences and Arts. (www.ullilust.de)

Carola Köhler, freelance editor and translator. Studied Modern German Literature, Italian and Art History in Heidelberg, Bari and Berlin. Research assistant in Italian linguistics at the Humboldt University of Berlin. Self-employed for over fifteen years. Involved in the BücherFrauen e.V. network, including as regional spokesperson for Berlin. Organization and moderation of events. Currently Chief Financial Officer. Lives in Berlin and Bari. (www.ck-lektorat.de)