TEMPORARY KITCHEN 2026 #3
It's their way of sharing in a grief that now stretches between me and all of them
Reading and digesting Afsaneh Irani's text "Geography of Me", by Raha Dehghani Vinicheh in collaboration with Yasmeen Al-Qaisi
Sun 18 October, 4—6 pm

 

Meeting point:
Jahnstraße 24, 50676 Cologne, in front of the Forough Book bookstore and the Pinocchio restaurant
No registration required! The event is free of charge.

Raha Dehghani Vinicheh and Yasmeen Al-Qaisi read stories from "Geography of Me", a collection of short stories written in Persian by author Afsaneh Irani and published independently due to censorship in Iran. They read Afsaneh Irani's stories, translated by her daughters, while sharing food, following a custom practised at gravesites in Vinicheh. This is the place from which Raha's name originates, inherited from her father, who died prematurely, and a village in Iran.

At the graves in the village of Vinicheh, there is always a carpet, along with food, halva, sweets and bread – everything considered necessary to honour death and life at the same time. People cook at home and bring food to the cemetery to share it; this is called "Khairat". The two artists have received permission from Afsaneh Irani, Raha's mother, to share her words: "It's their way of sharing in a grief that now stretches between me and all of them."

The stories that underpin this shared act of mourning deal with the loss of loved ones, motherhood and femininity, farewells, and love, as well as all the reproductive labour Afsaneh has carried out as an educator and single mother.

Together, Raha Dehghani Vinicheh and Yasmeen Al-Qaisi read, cook, share and process these stories at the Temporary Kitchen that afternoon. They take their time to mourn together through the preparation and arrangement of food, stirring slowly and for a long time, until its aroma spreads through the streets. The scent is memory and comfort. When someone is no longer with us, we care for one another through food; food brings love and life back, allowing us to carry on living. As we grieve, we also care for one another – through food, through words, through our presence.

Languages: English and Persian (Afsaneh Irani's publication is available on site in English and German).

About the artists
Raha Dehghani Vinicheh is a choreographer, dancer and visual artist from Iran, living in Cologne. Yasmeen Al-Qaisi is a poet who writes with food and sound, raised on the Danube, now grieving in Berlin.

 

Image:
Afsaneh Irani