Portuguese-language cinema

In Lisbon, the first-ever festival of cinema from Portuguese-speaking countries has started, bringing together films from Mozambique, Angola, Brazil, Guinea-Bissau and Cape Verde, as well as Portugal itself. Organizers hope it will strengthen cultural ties between countries that share a legacy of empire.

'Fest In', as it is called, is the first festival of Portuguese-language cinema. Films and directors are coming to Lisbon to take part. And festival organizers have also reached out to African and Brazilian immigrant communities in Portugal, hoping for their participation and attendance as well. Admission to all events is free.

The film festival is central to a larger cultural week, whose coordinator, João Costa Ribas, explained why it took so long to come up with this festival concept. Ex-colonies' relationships with the former imperial power is like that of grown-up children that take decades to come to terms with their parents, he said - but he quickly added that he sees all the countries involved as equals.

Nazi documentation center

In Berlin, a new exhibition and documentation center will house a permanent exhibition entitled "Topography of Terror". Between 1933 and 1945, the central institutions of Nazi persecution were located on the grounds of the present-day building in the German capital's Niederkirchnerstrasse.

Since 1987, the permanent exhibition "Topography of Terror" has been presented to the public on this historic site. With the inauguration of the new documentation center, three permanent exhibitions will be open to the public. All of them are presented in both German and English. The new center is based on a prize-winning design by architect Ursula Wilms and landscape architect Heinz W. Hallmann.

MAXXI museum in Rome

The new museum for modern and contemporary art in Italy, MAXXI, puts some paint thinner on the theory that all the brushes in Italy dried up after the deaths of Michaelangelo and Caravaggio.

Museum curators hope to show the world that Italy didn't stop creating art after the Renaissance.

Iraqi architect Zaha Hadid designed the airy museum, which is located in Rome. The main exhibit, called Spazio (Space), will showcase the fluid architecture and reveal what MAXXI's directors have been up to during the ten years of planning and construction.

The building will display the MAXXI collection, which includes works of the arte povera artists. The Italy-born movement encouraged use of everyday materials to create works that rebelled against traditional forms of sculpture and painting. Another exhibit will spotlight the controversial artist Gino De Dominicis, who often worked with skeletons; fascist-era architect Luigi Moretti will be featured in a career retrospective, and a video installation by Turkish artist Kutlug Ataman look´s at the conflicts between the East and West, modernization and tradition.

It is a challenge that MAXXI is likely to face as well.

Design kiosks in the Ruhr Valley

In Germany, a competition was held to identify the 30 most compelling design products. The conditions stated that the item had to be functional, fit into a box measuring 11x11x11 cm, and cost less than €20 ($25).

Now, the products will go on sale in kiosks around the Ruhr Valley region. In Germany, kiosks are streetside stalls that sell newspapers and confectionery. In 2010, some 30 kiosks in the region will be offering the general public the opportunity to buy those winning designs.

Accompanying the project: a retrospective exhibition of work by the City of Bochum Design Prize winners and entrants since 1997.

Editor: Jennifer Abramsohn