The Workshops of Culture Publishing House, run by the municipal cultural institution Workshops of Culture in Lublin, is a small, niche publisher focused on literature and culture from Central and Eastern Europe. It was established in 2014 as a continuation of “Wschodni Express” (Eastern Express), a project by Andrij Saweneć that had been suspended several years prior. Savenets, a Ukrainian writer and translator associated with Lublin, had originally prepared the project during the city’s bid for the title of European Capital of Culture. The name was intended to evoke the Orient Express—the luxury railway running from Western to Eastern Europe—and the “Literaturexpress Europa” initiative. The latter was a train that, in the year 2000, carried one hundred poets from 43 countries across the Old Continent for six weeks

The primary objective of the project was to create a platform for countries and cultures that previously lacked the space to express their voices on the international stage. Another vital aspect was the promotion of the languages and cultures of Poland’s neighboring countries. An inseparable element of the initiative was to be a series of meetings with writers and translators. Although the idea collapsed after the city lost its bid for the ECoC 2016 title, it returned a few years later in a slightly modified format.

Beyond these original goals, the Publishing House is tasked with releasing the latest literature across various genres: from poetry and prose to drama, youth literature, and comics. Its mission has also expanded to include disseminating knowledge about multicultural richness, broadly promoting the literature, culture, and art of Eastern and Central Europe, advocating for democratic and civic values, and introducing Polish readers to the works of writers who are either unknown or underrepresented in the Polish literary circuit.

Wschodni Express

The publishing activities of Workshops of Culture focus primarily on the Wschodni Express (Eastern Express) series. This series serves as a platform for diverse prose, essays, and poetry. The featured authors represent the most distinguished voices from Ukraine, Belarus, Latvia, and Lithuania, including Yurii Andrukhovych, Artem Chekh, Andriy Bondar, Oleksandr Boichenko, Andriy Lyubka, Halyna Kruk, Mykola Riabchuk, and Natalka Sniadanko. The series has also published short stories by Oleh Sentsov, the filmmaker and writer who spent five years in Russian labour camps.

Workshops of Culture also takes great pride in its collaboration with the eminent Polish translator Bohdan Zadura, who has spent years introducing Ukrainian prose and poetry to Polish readers.

The name of the series—”Wschodni Express”—alludes to renowned projects such as Literaturexpress Europa 2000, where over a hundred writers and poets from 43 countries traveled from Lisbon to Berlin, as well as Potyah76 (Train 76), an online magazine dedicated to the culture of Central and Eastern Europe. The Wschodni Express series does more than just popularise the contemporary literature of Poland’s eastern neighbors; it builds a space for intercultural dialogue and mutual understanding through the medium of the written word: the Literary Eastern Express.

Literary Eastern Express

The “Literary Eastern Express” (LEE) project aims to promote contemporary Ukrainian literature in Poland and strengthen the presence of Eastern European culture within the international literary circuit. As part of LEE, 16 books by Ukrainian authors—representing various genres, generations, and aesthetics—will be translated and published.

The core idea of the project is to build lasting intercultural bridges through literature. We strive to introduce Polish readers to creators who have previously been absent or underrepresented in our publishing market. Our goal is to showcase the richness of contemporary Ukrainian culture and integrate it into the broader European debate on identity, history, and modern social challenges.

A significant element of the project is ensuring that refugees from Ukraine have access to current literature and actively promoting it within these communities. Another key aspect is highlighting the role of the translator as—according to literary theory—the essential “second author.”

Specific Project Objectives:

  1. Promoting multiculturalism and the richness of Ukrainian culture through the translation and publication of books by Ukrainian authors.
  2. Disseminating knowledge about the spiritual culture, literature, and art of Ukraine as a vital element for both Polish society and the EU.
  3. Encouraging reading and the exploration of Eastern European culture by publishing works in various formats, both traditional (print) and modern (ebooks and audiobooks)..
  4. Providing access to high-quality literary works by Ukrainian authors to a wider audience in Poland.
  5. Building intercultural bridges and promoting dialogue by presenting Ukrainian literature previously unpublished in Poland.
  6. Creating social awareness regarding the cultural, literary, and artistic landscape of Eastern Europe.
  7. Supporting Ukrainian authors by promoting their work on the international stage.
  8. Inspiring reflection on the contemporary realities and social challenges of Eastern Europe through literature.

As part of “Literary Eastern Express,” we publish prose, poetry, children’s and youth literature, and comics. Poetry is released in a bilingual format (Polish and Ukrainian), allowing readers to experience the original sound of the text while benefiting from the translation. A portion of the books is also available in digital formats as ebooks, with selected titles released as audiobooks.

Books published under the project are distributed in bookstores and libraries and promoted at book fairs both in Poland and abroad. They are accompanied by author meetings with writers and translators, as well as a presence in trade and national media. These activities are designed to strengthen the international circulation of Ukrainian literature and increase its visibility in the public sphere.

The project is co-funded by the European Union’s “Creative Europe” programme.

Grant amount: €155,345

Total project budget: €258,909

Project duration: October 1, 2023 – September 30, 2026

Books published to date:

  1. Czapeczka i wieloryb – Kateryna Babkina, trans. Bohdan Zadura (Print).
  2. Charków 1938 – Oleksandr Irvanets, trans. Andrij Saweneć (Print & Ebook).
  3. Zawartość męskiej kieszeni – Oleh Kotsarev, trans. Aneta Kamińska (Bilingual, Print).
  4. Krótka historia ukraińskiego feminizmu – Mykola Yabchenko, Ivan Kypibida, Yuliia Vus, trans. Andrij Saweneć (Print).
  5. z mięty – Borys Filonenko, Anton Reznik, Danylo Shtangeev, trans. Aleksandra Zińczuk (Print).
  6. Tom & Tom – Vasyl Slapchuk, trans. Halina Surowiec (Print & Ebook).
  7. Jak zostałam świętą – Tania Malarchuk, trans. Anna Łazar (Print & Ebook).
  8. Ta Maya, co filmy kręciła– Oksana Lushchevska, trans. Vira Romanyshyn (Print & Audiobook).
  9. Kotek, Kogutek, Szafka – Oleksandr Mykhed, trans. Andrij Saweneć (Print & Audiobook).
  10. Gwiazdozbiór Kury – Sofia Andrukhovych, trans. Andrij Saweneć (Print & Audiobook).

Coming in 2026:

  1. Kławka – Maryna Hrymych, trans. Halina Surowiec (Print & Ebook).
  2. Klatka dla wilgi – Volodymyr Danylenko, trans. Andrij Saweneć (Print & Ebook).
  3. Mam na imię Warwara – Dzvinka Matiyash, trans. Andrij Saweneć (Print & Ebook).
  4. Serce Apaczy – Ivan Semesiuk, trans. Aleksandra Zińczuk (Bilingual, Print).
  5. Miejsce stałego zamieszkania – Serhiy Zhadan, trans. Aleksandra Zińczuk (Bilingual, Print).
  6. Bestiariusz – Tania Malarchuk, trans. Marta Odulińska (Print & Ebook).

Zakotwiczone (Anchored)

The series was established in 2021 in response to new needs that emerged in an era of community disintegration, the weakening of European, neighborly, and interpersonal ties, the collapse of existing geopolitical systems, and shifting patterns of daily life. In this context, the concept of geopoetics has also evolved—literature that transcends not only political borders but also cultural and mental ones becomes a tool for unifying and interpreting the dynamic transformations taking place in the world.

The Anchored series provides a space for literature that challenges mental patterns, recognizes emotional impulses, and explores the depth of concepts. These are books that confront the challenges of the present and the future while maintaining a connection to the past—to the soil, historical context, value systems, or even a single nerve anchored in a specific time and place. However, in a new post-isolation world—marked by catastrophe—a new sensitivity is being born. The definitions of what is “ours,” native, or familiar have burned out. The borders of West and East, North and South are shifting once again, and with them, the literatures of individual countries and languages.

It is time to change the narrative based on convenient oppositions and divisions. If we want to unleash new culture-forming meanings, it is time to come to terms with variance and inevitable change. To connect while flowing. To anchor anew. The time has come to shift away from narratives that have relied on easy polarities. To unlock new creative potential, we must accept variability and flux. Literature is not static—it connects and takes root once more.