How Villa Aurora champions human rights and exiled voices – Director

Villa Aurora and the Thomas Mann House are United States-based organizations that aim to foster transatlantic dialogue, champion human rights, and preserve the legacy of exiled artists and intellectuals. Both are funded by the German government.

Located in Los Angeles, Villa Aurora was once home to German-Jewish author Lion Feuchtwanger and his wife Marta during their exile from Nazi Germany. It hosts artists-in-residence from Germany, facilitates collaborations with the Los Angeles arts community, and partners with organizations like Reporters Without Borders to support persecuted writers and journalists from around the world. The centre also honours exiled intellectuals through exhibitions, public events, and academic projects.

The Thomas Mann House, former residence of Nobel laureate Thomas Mann and his family during their exile from 1942 to 1952, reopened in 2018 as a hub for intellectual exchange. Acquired by the German government, it serves as a platform for dialogue on global challenges, hosting scholars, writers, and policymakers. Through lectures, workshops, and other programmes, it promotes discussions on democracy, climate change, and human rights and other global issues.

The organizations award the Feuchtwanger Fellowship in collaboration with Reporters Without Borders. The fellowship supports writers and journalists defending human rights or facing persecution. Since 1996, three Nigerian journalists, including Pluboard’s editor-at-large, Eric Ojo, have received the fellowship.

In this interview with Pluboard, Claudia Gordon, director of Villa Aurora and the Thomas Mann House’s director of administration, reflects on the organizations’ work.

Read the full interview below:

Role at Villa Aurora and Thomas Mann House

I am the Director of Villa Aurora and also the Director of Administration of Villa Aurora and Thomas Mann House in Los Angeles. Villa Aurora and Thomas Mann House in Los Angeles as well as our office in Berlin work collectively under one administrative and financial umbrella. In this respect, I am responsible for both houses in LA, but then each of the houses here in Los Angeles have separate program teams. So, as far as programs are concerned, I’m only responsible for Villa Aurora.

This includes projects and programmes involving the resident artists at the Vila as well as programmes centered on the history of the house and those conceived and organized with local partners.

Between 2002 and 2007 you served as the Director of Villa Aurora.  In 2020, you once again assumed the same position and you have continued to serve in that capacity till date. How would you describe your experience in the last four years?

When we first started, it was during the pandemic. So, I assumed office again in February 2020 and then in March, we had to close down the house and send all of our fellows home. The house remained closed for quite a while. So, that was really a bit of a traumatic experience, I have to say. We were however, still busy during that period. We did some extensive renovations in the house that we wouldn’t have been able to do with the fellows present. We also pivoted to digital programmes and we were quite busy with that but still, the Villa stood empty and that’s not what the house was supposed to be. As a former fellow yourself, you know that the house is alive because of the people living and working here. The discussions, the programmes, the events and people coming for tours – all of these things keep the house alive. So, all of these activities were cancelled, and of course, that was a very, very tough time, especially when you start a new position.  I had served as Villa director before but under a very difference circumstance. Back then, we didn’t have the Thomas Mann House, we had less fellows and we had even smaller team. So, this time it felt like a whole new endeavour, and we had a lot of ambitious goals with regards to program development. Together with my long-term colleague Friedel Schmoranzer, our program director, I had made all sorts of plans on how to further improve our profile and had a lot of interesting projects already planned – then we couldn’t do anything. So, that was difficult but of course, it made it all the more special when the program eventually started up again.  You become acutely aware of the privilege that you have, sitting here in the office while the most interesting people with amazing projects and all sorts of different experiences are just delivered right to your doorstep. That’s really a pretty amazing job. I have to say.

Can you share with some of the success stories ever since that moment till now?

Our programmes are very versatile. Of course, the most important to us are the ones that concern our fellows. So, every quarter we have our “Meet-the-artist-reception”, where we introduce the current group of fellows. We are also organizing programmes with individual fellows and we’ve had a variety of really big success stories. For example, we had a really amazing concert with works by composer Cathy Milliken and that was a big success. We’ve organized exhibition, readings or film screenings. Just yesterday, we had a film screening at the Goethe-Institut in Los Angeles, which is of course, an important and long-time partner of the movie. The film, “I’m Your Man” is based on a story by our current right-hand resident Emma Braslavsky, and she was present for a Question and Answer (Q&A) session together with her translator Holly Yanacek. The director of the movie version is our Alumna Maria Schrader. Presenting our artists and helping them network and make connections in the community is the focus of our mission. In addition, we have a few signature events, such as the Annual Reception honoring German Oscar ® nominees. In 2023, one of our Alumni, Edward Berger, was nominated for All Quiet on the Western Front. That was of course, a really big celebration for us. Last year, we were able to celebrate Ilker Çatak who’s going to be a Villa Aurora fellow in 2025 and his film The Teacher’s Lounge. And we had Sandra Hüller (nominated for Best Actress) and Wim Wenders at the Villa. Needless to say, this is always a very exciting event which has become a fixture in the film community during Oscar week and gives an opportunity for filmmakers, producers, supporters, and film funding institutions from the United States of America and Germany to meet and network.

Another important area that we focus on is the exile history of the house. As you know, the Villa was the exile home of Lion and Marta Feuchtwanger. Lion Feuchtwanger was a German Jewish author who was very prominent in the 1930s, 40s and into the 50s. He’s not so much of a household name anymore now, but we are trying to get him some of the recognition he deserves. He has a bit of a renaissance that started with the publication of a revised English translation of his novel, entitled “The Oppermanns” by Joshua Cohen, who is a Pulitzer prize-winning author, which resulted in two articles in the New York Times. There’s also been an interest in turning it maybe into a film which is interesting, since it was supposed to be a screenplay in the beginning. There was to be a British film but the British authorities got cold feet because that was in the early 30s, because it was written contemporaneously and narrates the story of a German Jewish Family having to flee from the Nazis. They refrained from making the movie because they were still on appeasement course at that point.

During the Feuchtwanger years, the Villa was one of the meeting places of German and European exiles in Los Angeles, and we’re very much trying to keep this spirit alive. For example, we had a very successful programme not too long ago, connecting the initiative Recovered Voices led by James Conlon at the Los Angeles Opera that brings into focus composers whose voices were silenced for political reasons, many of them Jewish, either because the composers lost their lives or because their works did not get the reception they deserved. We initiated a panel discussion with Conlon and representatives of Prague Operas who actually have a similar initiative called Musica Non Grata. This was a very successful and extremely moving event combining both talks about these important initiatives with an amazing musical performance. So, those were definitely some of the highlights from the recent past.

Tell us more about the legacy of Lion Feuchtwanger and his wife Marta, especially as it relates to the origin of Villa Aurora and its residency programs?

Well, the legacy of Lion Feuchtwanger and his wife Marta is really at the centre of our mission. After Lion died in 1958, his wife Marta then took care of the whole estate, including the house, the library, the manuscripts and the correspondence until her own death in 1987. The Feuchtwanger estate was inherited by the University of Southern California (USC) but because of the location, the University could not use the house, which also needed extensive renovations. At the time, a circle of friends and supporters got together in Berlin under the leadership of Maranne Hewagen (who has been involved with the organization ever since), Freimut Duve, Volker Skierka and others and bought the house from USC. It was very clear from the beginning that the house was not to be a museum or even a center for exile studies per se, because the university had already established the Feuchtwanger Memorial Library on its campus and they are very active in preserving and promoting research into Feuchtwanger’s work and the works of his fellow exiles. Rather, the Villa Aurora was supposed to be a lively place for artistic and intellectual exchange much as it was during the Feuchtwanger years when the émigrés and their friends got together to read from their works and discuss. It was therefore decided that the best way to preserve this legacy was to create a center for transatlantic cultural exchange and interdisciplinary residency program which was established in 1995. We host artists from the fields of music, literature, film, and visual arts that come to us for three months to live and work. They are all German-based because it is a program funded by the German government as part as the Foreign Culture and Education policy initiative, but they do not have to be German citizens. They just have to have the center of their lives and works in Germany when they apply, because the idea is to present what is going on in Germany in terms of art and culture and start conversations and collaborations with institutions and individuals in Los Angeles.

Another programme very closely connected to the Feuchtwanger legacy is the Feuchtwanger Fellowship which is awarded to writers and journalists (and one filmmaker so far). In recent years, we’ve been working with Reporters Without Borders on the nomination process. This programme is a reminder of the fact that the suppression of freedom of speech and the denial of basic human rights that drove Feuchtwanger into exile is still occurring today. So, we invite journalists who work on human rights and freedom of expression and similar issues in their home countries, often under very difficult circumstance. So, it is no coincidence that this particular Fellowship bears the Feuchtwanger name because of course, the connection is very strong.

As you said earlier, Villa Aurora and Thomas Mann House are currently working jointly. How and when did the teamwork start and how has it been all along?

I think it’s been a kind of a win-win situation for both houses. We were able to take the Thomas Mann house, which is owned by the German government under our non-profit umbrella and help with overseeing renovations, administration and financing. It is very important, though, that we have two distinct program profiles. The Thomas Mann house has annual themes and people who apply for Thomas Mann Fellowship can tackle these themes from all sorts of different angles. So, we have journalists, scholars, public intellectuals occasionally we’ve had writers. The annual themes always center around democracy because of course, the Thomas Mann House was the place where Mann wrote and recorded his appeals to the German listeners. These recordings were then shipped to Europe in a “cloak and dagger” operation and then broadcast by the BBC into Germany in an effort to educate the German public on the atrocities of the Nazis. So, this is what the annual themes get kind of their cue from. This year’s theme is “Democracy and Vulnerability” which is of course, especially interesting in this year with US Presidential election coming up. Despite or maybe because of the different profiles, there is a lot of interchange between the fellows of the two houses. We occasionally do programs together and the teams have really grown together. The Thomas Mann house is headed by a director that is sent by the Goethe-Institut, who is our partner organization in this endeavor, and of course, they bring a very vast knowledge and the whole of Goethe network that we can, in turn, profit from. So, it’s been a very fruitful collaboration on many levels.

Some journalists of African descent have been awarded the Feuchtwanger Fellowship since its inception. How will you assess their conduct and performance during the fellowship?

I can say for the Feuchtwanger fellows what I can say for the fellows at large. Sometimes people who visit remark on how the house is very beautiful. As you know, it has an ocean view and a nice garden and everything. People say it’s fantastic that people can take time off and it’s a great place to just kind of hang out – and of course there are celebrations and get-togethers. But everybody who has been at the Villa has been working extremely hard. Publications and other artistic works have been created and everybody really tries to make the most of that time to make connections, to discover Los Angeles and work on their projects. So, I would say their time here has been extremely fruitful and everybody is very inspired and works really hard.

Under the present dispensation, are there other fellowship/grant opportunities that may be of interest to prospective applicants from Africa or from other regions of the world?

That is a little bit difficult because as I have explained the overall fellowships are funded by the German government. However, artists of African descent who live in Germany can apply for all of our fellowships with the exception of Visual Arts. Visual Arts actually has a nomination process. The whole application process is outlined on our website, vatmh.org, which is short for Villa Aurora, Thomas Mann house, of course if you have any questions about it, you can also contact us. Other than that, we do not really have opportunities to apply for fellowships if you are not living and working within Germany.

How would you describe the role of members of Villa Aurora Advisory Council in policy formulation and execution of your organization‘s programme since you assumed office?

The council acts in an advisory capacity only. So, they are not directly setting policy but they are still immensely valuable for us, giving impulses on topics and people that that are irrelevant for us here in Los Angeles. They have all been instrumental in making connections for our artists on an individual basis. So, it’s really a great privilege to have these very accomplished people take time out of their busy lives to help us out and to advise us. We are very appreciative of this.  It is our goal to build a really broad network of connections, which then allows us to tailor solution to each specific artist. So, we analyze projects and areas of focus and point to people and institutions that are especially interesting for them.

Has your background in Egyptology, Sociology and Coptic Studies, in any way helped you in carrying out your job at Villa Aurora?

Since we have an interdisciplinary house as the Director of Villa Aurora, you have to kind of immerse yourself into all sorts of different art forms. In addition, we have the Feuchtwanger fellowship, the whole area of administration and finance and taking care of two historical houses. So, there is not really an area of study that could prepare you for all of that, but I would say, having gone through these studies and obtaining my Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), has enabled me to learn how to learn. So, I think what really helps me in this capacity is that I’ve learned how to research different topics effectively. And also, earning a doctorate degree, if nothing else, teaches you to hunker down, to stay focused on your topics and to not rest until you have resolved your problem or completed the task you set out to do. I think this comes in very handy in this area of work.

Are there operational challenges that you like to share with us?

The main challenge is reconciling all our different goals. For example, you have to take care of the house and if something breaks that might inconvenience the fellows. Or you organize a programme that takes a lot of your time and energy and then of course, you don’t want to shortchange the fellows that are in residence at the time. If a fellow would like to do a project that involves changes to the building or the exclusive use of certain rooms, you have to reconcile that with the requirements of the historical buildings and their fellow artists. So, we always call that a Conflict of Objectives – which is a challenge, but also a great opportunity to get a lot of very exciting things done.

On a lighter note, what are your hobbies, if any?

Yes, I do. One of my favorite things to do is reading. This also ties into my work at the Villa because of course to a certain extent, because a lot of what I read relates to my work and includes works written by our past, current or future authors, the history of exile but these are all things that I’m genuinely interested in anyways. So, it certainly does not feel like a sacrifice. On the contrary, it is definitely something that brings me energy. The same goes for attending cultural events, exhibitions, concerts and so on. That is just something that, as humans, is what sustains us. That’s another thing we have learned during the pandemic: The arts important things. They should not be regarded as an add-on or luxury to think of after the more mundane matters are resolved. On the contrary: Appreciating art is of utmost importance just for us as humans. That’s my conviction at least.

What does success mean to you?

Oh! that’s a very good question. In my work, I would kind of define it as being able to play a part in the creation of a work of art, a discussion on important topics, things like that. And bringing people together.

I have a very, very great respect for artists because not only are a lot of them always grappling with different kind of precarious situations in terms of, for example finances and job security. Even more importantly, in their work, they’re really turning themselves “inside out” and making themselves extremely vulnerable, which I think is very brave. So, for me if I can really help somebody in getting a project accomplished and getting something into the world, which was not there before, that is success for me.

Finally, before we go, what is your philosophy in life, if any?

My daughter just graduated from high school and one of her teachers actually asked us to write a little bit of a letter and a reflection of this famous Hamlet quote: “This above all: to thine own self be true, And it must follow, as the night the day, Thou canst not then be false to any man.” That’s really a very good starting point. I think it is of utmost importance to stick to your own moral and ethical principles in everything that you do from the very small things to the much bigger topics and then -standing on the shoulders of people like Lion and Marta Feuchtwanger – you also have to think about what you would do in a situation when this could have dire consequences. We are still in a position where we have freedom of speech and where nothing much will happen to me at my desk, taking a stand for something I think is important. Nevertheless, you also have to prepare yourself for hopefully also sticking to your principles, if this becomes difficult or event dangerous. Which is easier said than done.

Thank you so very much for your time. That would be it for this interview.

You are very welcome, Eric. Thank you.