- Installation
- Literature & Poetry
- Theater
How to Love Our Mothers: OUT/SIDE/IN Neukölln
Maya Ibrahim, Uriara Maciel
3 July 2026 19:00–22:00
4 July 2026 10:00–22:00
5 July 2026 11:00–16:00
This feminist participatory research installation maps mother-daughter love across borders, embodying the 48H Neukölln OUT/SIDE/IN theme where daughters navigate borders between cultural and geographic divides. It brings bell hooks' vision to life - where love functions as political practice through deliberate acts of care, accountability, and repair. It has become especially urgent now to build bridges between what migration and misunderstanding tear apart.
As a writer, poet and activist, occupying the social space of others taught me to care deeply for communities we find ourselves in. I’ve interviewed 15 daughters from around Berlin, Belgium, the US, Singapore, Thailand, India, Slovenia and beyond. What I’ve gathered are intimate stories of conflict, migration, survival strategies and where silence speaks loudly. This particular mode of installation through collective storytelling is aimed at forming a living atlas of love that speaks across generations, cultures, and divides.
Portraits, audio fragments, poetry, and a global map trace journeys from Neukölln to distant homes. Interactive stations invite letters to yourself, your mother, or who you see as (O)thers. In the silence and sound installation, sit quietly, listen to the voices of other daughters, and ask: What border do you want to soften?
Saturday's Forum Theatre, led by Feminist Theatre of the Oppressed practitioner Uriara Maciel, invites you to scenes for collective intervention. Observe on stage depictions of what it’s like to be a migrant daughter in Berlin - whether it be portrayals of love, rage, or belonging, and how our mothers respond (or not) to us. Overall, this seeks to build dialogue and foster deeper connections between “borders” both physical and emotional in the lines we draw for ourselves and others.
Ultimately, this installation encourages you to listen, feel, and speak with Others and our Mothers.
As a writer, poet and activist, occupying the social space of others taught me to care deeply for communities we find ourselves in. I’ve interviewed 15 daughters from around Berlin, Belgium, the US, Singapore, Thailand, India, Slovenia and beyond. What I’ve gathered are intimate stories of conflict, migration, survival strategies and where silence speaks loudly. This particular mode of installation through collective storytelling is aimed at forming a living atlas of love that speaks across generations, cultures, and divides.
Portraits, audio fragments, poetry, and a global map trace journeys from Neukölln to distant homes. Interactive stations invite letters to yourself, your mother, or who you see as (O)thers. In the silence and sound installation, sit quietly, listen to the voices of other daughters, and ask: What border do you want to soften?
Saturday's Forum Theatre, led by Feminist Theatre of the Oppressed practitioner Uriara Maciel, invites you to scenes for collective intervention. Observe on stage depictions of what it’s like to be a migrant daughter in Berlin - whether it be portrayals of love, rage, or belonging, and how our mothers respond (or not) to us. Overall, this seeks to build dialogue and foster deeper connections between “borders” both physical and emotional in the lines we draw for ourselves and others.
Ultimately, this installation encourages you to listen, feel, and speak with Others and our Mothers.
Biography
Maya Ibrahim, Uriara Maciel
Maya Ibrahim, from Singapore, based in Neukölln, weaves intersectional feminism, decoloniality, and reimagined education into her writing and facilitation. She's crafting a community around the theme of How to Love Our Mothers, from (Others), an artistic project amplifying daughters' voices from around the globe. A Humanity in Action Democracy Berlin fellow, she writes and performs poetry on how love can be a political and transformative force.
Uriara Maciel is a Brazilian director, actor, and playwright who has lived in Berlin since 2015. Her work focuses on decolonial and feminist theatre. As an activist and cultural organizer, she co-founded the Gira Resistance Festival and organizes the Berlin celebration of the International Day of Black Women of Latin America and the Caribbean.
Uriara Maciel is a Brazilian director, actor, and playwright who has lived in Berlin since 2015. Her work focuses on decolonial and feminist theatre. As an activist and cultural organizer, she co-founded the Gira Resistance Festival and organizes the Berlin celebration of the International Day of Black Women of Latin America and the Caribbean.
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