I love it when my poetry is translated. Not only does it make my work available to people outside of the Dutch speaking world, it also means something I made very tangibly moves someone else to make something as well. Also, translation is a very potent reminder that nothing or no-one is ever really finished and always remains on the move.
Thus far, you can read poems of mine in three languages other than Dutch:
- English (by Astrid Alben, Michele Hutchinson, Willem Groenewegen and Joe Hall)
- Greek (by Irini Papakyriakou)
- Spanish (by Antonio Cruz Romero)
- Arabic (by Yasser Abdel-Latif and Fatena Al Ghorra)
You can read a little bit about every translation project here. For now, I can only refer to or show some English and Greek translations, but in due time, a few of the ones in Arabic will also be available here.
English
In 2018, my debut collection Binnenplaats (Enclosure) was awarded with the VSB Poetry Prize, the most important prize for a poetry collection in the Dutch speaking world. All the nominees had some poems translated into English for the occasion. In my case, Astrid Alben translated five poems from my collection, which can be read on Poetry International Web.
Here’s me reading from Binnenplaats during the Poetry International Festival, with seven English translations – six by Astrid Alben and one by Michele Hutchinson – projected as subtitles (I also read a few of the Sonnets of Desolation by Gerard Manley Hopkins, which I’ve translated into Dutch):
And here is me reading with the world-jazz-impro-duo Boi Akih at the same festival:
I talked about my work, and read from it in English, during a session with Sarah Carriger, at the International Writer’s Collective in Amsterdam. This was recorded and you can hear it here.
Earlier, Willem Groenewegen translated an otherwise unpublished poem for a book published by Onomatopee: Who told you so? The collective story vs the individual narrative.
Earlier still, I collaborated with American poet Joe Hall to make an English translation/retelling of another unpublished poem of mine.
Greek
Irini Papakyriakou has made beautiful translations of quite a few of my poems into the Greek language. Ten poems she’s translated have been published in the Greek magazine ποιητική, along with an extensive essay. Below you will find one of the poems. The magazine can still be ordered here.
Spanish
The Spanish poet Antonio Cruz Romero has compiled, translated and published an anthology of poetry by poets writing in Dutch, entitled Entre diques y esclusas. Antología de poesía neerlandesa actual. It was published by Ravenswood Books Editorial. More information van be found on the poet’s website. These are great, musical translations. Later, I will post one or two of them on this page, but for now, here is the cover:
