Courage wins

Project period: March to June 2021

When am I courageous, when do I have to "show my colors"? What power lies dormant within me? What scares me?

14 pupils from Krems secondary school explored the topic of moral courage in school and everyday life with illustrations and texts from Christine Nöstlinger's The Fiery Red Friederike. Published in 1970, the story of red-haired Friederike, who is teased by her classmates, is a timeless tale about exclusion and being different that was ahead of its time as a book against bullying.

The project involved the Austrian author Christoph Mauz, for whom Christine Nöstlinger was a great mentor, the German illustrator Nina Pagalies, who explored Nöstlinger's texts in drawings for the Krems exhibition project, and the Buchstabenfabrik, which continues Christine Nöstlinger's socio-political concerns. The project was scientifically supported by D.O.T. The Open Door, an international research group that focuses on the topic of social well-being and strengthening relationships between young people.

The project was presented in the exhibition "Christine Nöstlinger and her Alphabet Factory" (14.11.2021-03.07.2022) at the Karikaturmuseum Krems.

The project was funded by the Federal Ministry of Education, Science and Research.