7 Marazliivska Street, Odesa, 65014
Phone: +380 48 725 45 67
The World Club of Odesans… Like the city that gave birth to this amazing community, it is unique. Try to find a World Club of Parisians or Muscovites, Romans or Berliners – you won’t find one: only the residents of our city, who for various reasons and at different times left it, continue to consider themselves its citizens. A tender love for Odesa compels these people to find each other wherever possible, recognizing a fellow Odesan by their distinctive accent, remarkable gestures, and, most importantly, their way of thinking. Thus, in various corners of the world, strange and seemingly unlikely groups of people began to form – not by nationality, religion, or political views, but simply by their connection to the City they left behind.
The members of the World Club of Odesans and its Presidential Council are people well-known in Odesa: industrialists, bankers, lawyers, actors, artists, doctors, writers, local historians, scientists, and musicians. One can confidently say that this is the intellectual and spiritual elite of Odesa. The admission principle remains unchanged: a newcomer requires recommendations from two Club members, as well as, of course, an entry fee and monthly dues.
The Club also accepts those who currently live anywhere in the world. Odesans of the diaspora are referred to as “virtual” members of the World Club of Odesans. Since the founding of the Club, its newspaper “World Odesa News” has been published. Since 2000, “the Deribasivska – Rishelievska” almanac has also been in circulation.
Through the involvement of the World Club of Odesans, numerous books have been published. The aforementioned magazine “Fontan”, which has delighted its readers monthly since 1997, was also born within the Club’s walls. In the “Reading Room” section of the website, you can find a large collection of works. The main page also features a “Club Video Library” section. Additionally, there is the “Bookshelf” created at the World Club of Odesans, which houses works by Odesa authors and books about Odesa by out-of-town writers (over 500 titles). The “Bookshelf” is continuously updated, and every visitor to the Club or the website can find and purchase a book for themselves…
Today, this place – the building at the corner of Marazliivska and Bazarna Streets – is well-known not only in Odesa but far beyond its borders. Visitors to the city, coming to reminisce about the past, often stop by. It’s not uncommon to meet honorary guests at the Club, who, though not born in Odesa, love the city and come here for tours or social missions.
Under the auspices of the World Club of Odesans, creative contests, festivals, and exhibitions are held. In the Club’s art gallery, artists and photographers from Odesa, and sometimes guests from other cities and countries, exhibit their works. Here, book presentations of works published in Odesa are held, as well as press conferences with guests of the city. For several years now, the famous “Green Lamp” has been revived, bringing together young writers and poets of Odesa.