Friends of "Sagenhaftes Island"

Friends of "Sagenhaftes Island" Society established in Germany

At the beginning of December a group of Germans and Icelanders founded the “Sagenhaftes Island” society. The society's aim is to support the numerous cultural projects that are planned in Germany on the occasion of Iceland being Guest of Honour at the 2011 Frankfurt Book Fair. According to the society's charter, its role is to:

• promote exhibitions in the fields of Icelandic visual arts, photography, film, design and architecture in Germany.
• promote and organise conferences, meetings, lectures and readings linked to Icelandic literary presentation in Germany.
• raise money for this purpose using membership fees, sponsorship and various grants.

The first society chair was Ólafur Davíðsson, Iceland's outgoing ambassador to Germany, while Vigdís Finnbogadóttir, former president of Iceland, was Honorary President and Patron. All Iceland's consuls in Germany undertook to support the society. 

Iceland's participation at Frankfurt in 2011 was largely funded by the Icelandic state. The devaluation of the Icelandic króna, however, created problems for the project, while at the same time there was clearly great interest in Germany in Iceland's contribution to arts and literature. The Friends made it possible for Iceland to carry the project through with due excellence and distinction.