The theme of the festival, which is arranged for the 10th time in October 2023, is X, which can be used to describe the unknown, a meeting point, the number ten, a kiss, the end of something, a choice, a danger, death or a mystery. The meanings “meeting point” as well as “crossroads” are highlighted in the international co-operative projects. The Crossroads series of updates contains ten short texts, inspired by the symbol X.

I Hermes
II Roomalaiset numerot / Roman Numerals / Romerska siffror
III Tienristeys / Crossroads / Vägkorsning

HERMES

In the ancient Greek mythology, HERMES was the herald of the gods and the protector of all travellers. He was also worshipped as the protector of shepherds, literature, orators, athletes, sailors, merchants and thieves. He was the son of Zeus and the nymph Maia. Hermes’ attributes were his winged sandals, his winged staff with snakes and a winged helmet. Hermes invented the musical scale, the alphabet, astronomy, card and dice games as well as divination. Hermes travelled freely between the worlds of the mortals and the gods and he guided the souls of the deceased to the underworld.

May Hermes also protect the artists and the audience travelling to Helsinki, Oslo, Gliwice and Berlin in the festival and networking projects in 2023.

ROMAN NUMERALS

X is the Roman numeral for 10. The ROMAN NUMERALS are a decimal system in which numbers are written with the letters I, V, X, L, C, D and M, where each letter has a fixed value. The other numbers are written with combinations of these letters. The system evolved from numbers shown with digits on hands, but since it’s hard to discern a number represented by even a fairly small number of parallel lines, the Romans started using tally marks by counting four lines and then crossing the first four lines with another line. Over the ages, the combination of five lines was simplified into the letter V. After that, they began using the letter X for the number VV. One hundred, five hundred and one thousand also got their own letters.

CROSSROADS

A CROSSROADS represents a place “in-between worlds”, nowhere and everywhere. This is a widespread thought, for instance in the cultures of the Antique, in Europe during the Middle Ages and the Modern Era and among the slaves in Brazil and the United States. At a crossroads, it was possible to meet supernatural beings and anything could happen. A crossroads was also a place where you could make deals.