« The celebration of Ligeti’s 2023 centenary serves as a launching pad for a multidisciplinary conference on “European Artists* in Postwar Exile,” examining the significance of the political and social conditions under which artists live and work, as well as framing the role, cultural significance, and the limits they face.

This conference deals with the artistic contributions and socio-cultural, or political, systems that affected (European) artists in exile (in Europe) in the postwar era, with special focus given to those whose country-of-origin was a former Soviet satellite state. The conference will feature a musical performance by Dr. Joseph Bognar, Professor and Chair of the Music Department at Valparaiso University, exploring Ligeti’s compositions and influence.

*Art/artist conceived broadly, to include poets, painters or playwrights, composers or ceramicists, and writers and thinkers in between.