European Roma Cultural Foundation ERCF

07/08/2026

„Rengetegen mondták, hogy a munkáim révén hallottak először a kényszersterilizációkról. Pontosan ezt szerettem volna elérni.” — Zsófia Takács

Zsófia Takács munkáiban kevéssé ismert történetek válnak erőteljes vizuális narratívákká, amelyek gondolkodásra és párbeszédre hívnak. Csaba Nemes egykori tanítványaként a Bura Galéria Te nem vagy olyan című kiállításán is szerepelt, ahol Žáby című sorozata a roma nők kényszersterilizációjának történetével foglalkozott.

Artwork
Žáby III.
2023
Pasztell HDF lapon
207 × 140 cm

Zsófia támogatásával hozzájárulhatsz ahhoz, hogy folytathassa művészi munkáját, kutatásait és olyan munkák létrehozását, amelyek fontos, gyakran elhallgatott történeteket tesznek láthatóvá.

Támogasd Zsófiát! A támogatás részleteit és a donate lehetőséget a Roma Cult oldalán találod: https://www.romacult.eu/donate

06/08/2026

“What matters to me is that many people have since told me they first learned about forced sterilisation through my work. That was exactly what I had hoped to achieve.” — Zsófia Takács

Through her work, Zsófia Takács transforms overlooked histories into powerful visual narratives that invite reflection and dialogue. A former student of Csaba Nemes, she first gained wider recognition through the Bura Galéria exhibition Te nem vagy olyan, where her acclaimed Žáby series sheds light on the history of coercive sterilisation of Romani women.

Artwork
If You Took My Identity, Can I Take Yours? | Álarcok II.
2026
Textile sewn onto paper, pastel
33 × 40 cm

By supporting Zsófia through The ONE Campaign, you help create the conditions for artists to continue producing work that challenges silence, deepens understanding, and reaches new audiences.

Learn more and support Zsófia through her ONE Campaign profile on the Roma Cult website: https://www.romacult.eu/donate

Support Zsófia. Support powerful artistic voices. Donate today.

02/08/2026

02/08/2026

ERCF Remembers ✊🏽Photo: Auschwitz-Birkenau, 2024.

02/08/2026

ERCF REMEMBERS ✊🏽 photo: Auschwitz-Birkenau, 2024.

31/07/2026

Why Nuremberg Still Matters for Roma

As we approach European Roma Holocaust Memorial Day on 2 August, we begin in Nuremberg.

The International Military Tribunal helped establish the legal language that still shapes international justice. Less widely known is that the persecution and murder of Roma were already documented in the proceedings. They were acknowledged, yet they did not become a central focus of the trials. This distinction influenced how Roma history entered legal recognition and public memory in the decades that followed.

Remembering Nuremberg from a Roma perspective is not about rewriting history. It is about understanding how Roma experiences became part of the historical record and why passing this knowledge to future generations matters.

This is the first post in our short series leading to European Roma Holocaust Memorial Day on 2 August.

Read the full article on the ERCF website.

30/07/2026

Remembering the Roma Holocaust

As 2 August – European Roma Holocaust Memorial Day – approaches, the European Roma Cultural Foundation begins a series of reflections on the history and legacy of the Roma Holocaust.

The Roma Holocaust is part of Europe's shared history. Remembering it means honoring the lives that were lost, confronting historical injustice, and ensuring that these stories continue to be told.

Over the coming days, we will share historical reflections, archival materials, and perspectives on remembrance, justice, and cultural memory leading up to 2 August.

Memory is not only about the past, it is also about the future.

17/07/2026

Fluid Futures: What Can Hydrofeminism Teach Us About Cultural Power?

What if water were more than a resource? What if it could become a way of thinking about culture itself?

Hydrofeminism begins with the idea that our bodies, environments and histories are deeply interconnected. Developed by philosopher Astrida Neimanis, this perspective understands water not only as matter but as a reminder that life is built through relationships, exchange and care.

Today, artists, curators and researchers are increasingly exploring these ideas through exhibitions, public programmes and artistic research. Water becomes a way to think about memory, migration, ecological justice and the future.

For ERCF, these conversations also resonate with the idea of cultural power. Culture is not static. Like water, it flows across generations, communities and places, carrying memories while creating new possibilities for dialogue and transformation.

Our latest Future Studies editorial reflects on why hydrofeminism matters today, and what it might teach us about archives, artistic practice and imagining more connected futures.

Read more on our website.

Explore how hydrofeminism opens new conversations between contemporary art, ecology, archives and cultural power in ERCF's latest Future Studies editorial.

16/07/2026

When cinema revisits history, it can also reopen conversations that societies have tried to forget.

A new Czech feature film, Only Beautiful Things to Look At, has brought renewed attention to the forced sterilisation of Romani women in former Czechoslovakia, one of the most painful chapters in Europe's recent history.

A thoughtful review published by Romea.cz goes beyond the film itself, raising important questions about representation, historical responsibility and the challenges of portraying structural violence through cinema.

For ERCF, this conversation is about more than one film. It is about cultural memory.

Whose stories become part of our shared history? Who tells them? And how can art help us confront injustices that remained invisible for far too long?

The experiences of Romani women are an essential part of Europe's cultural memory. Literature, scholarship, visual arts and film all have a role to play in ensuring these histories are not forgotten.

We invite you to explore the discussion and reflect on the role culture plays in shaping historical justice.

Source: Romea.cz review of Only Beautiful Things to Look At.

A reflection on a new Czech feature film exploring the forced sterilisation of Romani women and the importance of cultural memory, representation and historical justice.

15/07/2026

Congratulations to ERCF Board Member Angela Kocze on the publication of her new book.

"This book grew out of more than two decades of thinking, writing, and working alongside Romani women whose lives, labor, and courage have shaped not only my research but also my understanding of what justice, care, and solidarity can mean."

These words from the foreword beautifully capture what makes Angéla Kóczé's work so significant. Her scholarship has always been deeply connected to lived experience, to collective memory, and to the ongoing struggle for justice.

We are proud to celebrate the publication of Romani Women at the Edge of Neoliberal Europe: Discursive Emancipation and Structural Violence, published by Manchester University Press.

Drawing on more than two decades of research and engagement, the book examines why, despite years of inclusion policies and human rights discourse, Romani women continue to experience some of the deepest forms of structural inequality across Europe. At the same time, it highlights the knowledge, resilience and political agency that Romani women have created and sustained throughout these struggles.

Congratulations to Angéla Kóczé, the CEU Romani Studies Program, and everyone who contributed to bringing this important publication to life.