11 συμπόσιο ποίησης και μετάφρασης

Αγαπητοί φίλοι ποιητές και μεταφραστές,

Με χαρά σας καλούμε στο 11 συμπόσιο ποίησης και μετάφρασης που θα πραγματοποιηθεί από τις 10 Ιουλίου έως και τις 17 Ιουλίου 2016 στις Λεύκες Πάρου στο Σπίτι της Λογοτεχνίας.
Το Συμπόσιο της Πάρου ξεκίνησε το 2004 από τις Susan Gevirtz και Σιαρίτα Κουκά με σκοπό τη συνάντηση ελλήνων και αγγλόφωνων ποιητών και την in situ μετάφραση. Φέτος τη διοργάνωση του συμποσίου θα αναλάβει η Ελένη Δήμου, που συνδιοργάνωσε και τα συμποσία 2015 και 2016.

Το συμπόσιο επιστρέφει για φέτος στις Λέυκες Πάρου και είμαστε ευτυχείς γιατί τα πρώτα πέντε χρόνια του συμποσίου πραγματοποιήθηκαν στην Πάρο με μεγάλη επιτυχία. Οι Λεύκες είναι ένα πανέμορφο ήσυχο χωριό ιδανικό για μελέτη. Η διαμονή στο Σπίτι της Λογοτεχνίας θα γίνει ύστερα από συνεννόηση με την Ελένη Δήμου.

Παρακαλώ, επιτρέψτε μας να ξέρουμε το συντομότερο δυνατό εάν θα παρακολουθήσετε το συμπόσιο. Άν θα χρειαστείτε δωμάτιο στις Λέφκες, σας παρακαλούμε να συνενοηθείτε με την Ελένη όσο το δυνατόν πιο σύντομα. Έχουμε κλείσει ένα περιορισμένο αριθμό απο δωμάτια για το συμπόσιο.

Μη διστάσετε να μας στείλετε e-mail με οποιεσδήποτε ερωτήσεις. Επισυνάπτουμε και την πρόσκληση στα αγγλικά.

Susan Gevirtz / Σιαρίτα Κουκά / Ελένη Δήμου

Dear poets, translators, and scholars,

It is our pleasure to invite you to the eleventh annual Paros Translation Symposium, which will take place from 10 July through 17 July, 2016 in the village of Lefkes, on Paros island, Greece.

The Paros Symposium was founded by poets Susan Gevirtz and Siarita Kouka in 2004, to foster translation and exchange between Greek and Anglophone poets/translators. Our focus is on translation practice, working together to bring Greek poetry into English and vice versa, but we also envision a forum in which a diverse group of artists with different aesthetics and linguistic repertoires can engage in conversation. Participants range from those who actively translate between Greek and English, to those with partial or no knowledge of Greek but an interest in Greek literature and culture, to those who translate from other languages and write on cross-cultural poetics. Most if not all of the Greek participants are fluent in English. Although those of us on the anglophone side are acutely aware of a linguistic imbalance, symptomatic of larger global inequities, we believe there is still much to learn from this dialogue, however imperfect our knowledge of the other language.

More details and a schedule will follow, but for now here is a general idea of what our days will look like. We will work in small groups for about 4 hours, break for lunch/(swimming!)/siesta, and reconvene in the evening for talks and readings, before adjourning to dinner and more discussion. All evening events are open to the public. We will ask that each participant e-mail several items in advance to the group. In our next communication we will send more information to those who confirm that they are coming.

Please note: because we have limited time and wish to focus on poets whose work has not yet received much attention in translation, we ask that poets who have already attended the Symposium at least two previous times participate in the translation sessions only as a translator of others, and not as a poet to be translated. This is so that poets new to the Symposium may also benefit from having their work translated. All participants in attendance, both new and returning, are invited and encouraged to read their work in the evening readings.

Practicalities

Location: This year the Symposium will take place at The House of Literature in the mountain village of Lefkes, on the island of Paros. The Symposium took place on Paros for the first five years of its existence, and we are very pleased that it will be returning to Paros this year.
Lefkes is a beautiful, quiet place to work. The House of Literature was once a guest-house which has now been converted into rooms for writers’ residencies. Aside from the bedrooms the House includes a small library, seminar/work space including outdoor terraces, and a communal kitchen.

Accommodation & Costs: We currently have a small number of double rooms at the House available to house participants. Our policy has been to offer these rooms to first-time participants, and if there is space after that, to accommodate repeat participants. Each room has 2 beds, so if the need arises, we may request that people share. Meals are not included, but we will have use of the kitchen and dining room at the House. The cost for each participant who stays at the House will be 100 euros for the entire week (not per night). We stress that rooms at the House are quite basic.

Travel: In the summer months there is frequent ferry-boat service from the Athens port of Piraeus to Paros. The ferry takes about four hours. There are also flights from Athens to Paros.

This year Helen Dimos will be organizing on behalf of the Anglophone poets, as she did in 2014 and 2015. She will be the contact person for Anglophones pre-Athens for 2016. Please let her know as soon as possible if you will attend the Symposium. And feel free to e-mail with any questions. (Her contact above)

It is not definite if Susan Gevirtz and Siarita Kouka will be able to attend this year, but we are keeping our fingers crossed!

We deeply regret that we have no funds to help with any expenses this year.

We look forward to seeing you on Paros in July.

Susan Gevirtz, Siarita Kouka, Helen Dimos

Additional Information:

Translation work begun at the Symposium has resulted in several publications, with more on the way. Among these are (work by past participants including) Liana Sakelliou who is co-translator of H.D.’s _Trilogy_ into Greek (Gutenberg, 1999). Thanasis Maskaleris co-edited the Talisman _Anthology of Modern Greek Poetry_ [with Nanos Valaoritis]. Translations of Demosthenes Agrafiotis’s work have been published in U.S. journals by several translators, including Sakelliou and John Sakkis. J Sakkis has also published a translation of Siarita Kouka’s book _Benthos_. Agrafiotis was the first to translate American poet George Oppen into Greek and has published Louis Zukofsky in Greek translation [tr. Stella Nikoloudi] in his journal _Clinamen_. John Sakkis and Angelos Sakkis have translated 2 books by Agrafiotis that have been published by Post Apollo Press and ugly duckling press, respectively. For more publications and edited special issues by Symposium participants look at: http://www.e-poema.eu/index_gr.php?pid=22 Issue 9 and New American Writing No. 28. Tiff Dressen began, and Joseph Mosconi (Anglophone poets and Symposium participants) finished editing a section on poetry from the symposium for the online journal little Red Leaves http://littleredleaves.com/LRL5/5home.html. In addition to publications resulting from the Symposium, Greek poets have also been invited to the U.S. in order to read and participate in forums about poetry and Americans have been invited to Greek forums.