Melbourne Irish Studies Seminar Series 

Photo: John Montague and Samuel Beckett in Paris in the 60s

When: Wednesday 11 September, 4.30pm – 5.30pm

Where: Jabiru Room, Newman College (enter via main gate and follow signs); and via Zoom

Speaker: Dr Elizabeth R Pearce, School of Languages and Linguistics, University of Melbourne

John Montague (1929 – 2016) became Ireland’s First Chair of Poetry in 1998. While living in Paris in the early 1960s Montague became friends with the Irish writer Samuel Beckett, as well as numerous French poets, writers and translators of the era, and in later years divided his time between Cork and Nice. Montague strengthened Franco-Irish connections and a thriving interest in poetry translations and readings in Paris, particularly at the Université de la Sorbonne. This talk will explore Montague’s early poem ‘All Legendary Obstacles’, followed by an exploration of the French translation, ‘Tous les obstacles légendaires’ by Claude Esteban, a contemporary of Montague in Paris.

SPEAKER

Elizabeth Pearce is a researcher in literary translation in the School of Languages and Linguistics, the University of Melbourne, where her doctorate Rhythm, poetry and meaning: Seamus Heaney and Louis MacNeice in French translation was conferred in 2019. Her research interests include contemporary Irish poetry in English and its translation into French, as well as translation of the sonnet form. In June 2023 she was invited to address the ‘John Montague Memorial Conference’ organised by Université de la Sorbonne with the Centre Culturel Irlandais, Paris. She collaborates with TRACT (Traduction et communication transculturelle), Université de la Sorbonne Paris 3, and is a member of the research group La Société ETC: Écrire, Traduire, Créer, Université d’Aix-Marseille.

More details: Montague in translation (isaanz.org)

All welcome!

Date: 27 September 2024, 11am

Hosted by the UWS Writing and Society Research Centre

Register here

Deadline: Oct 15, 2024

Applications are now open for 2025 sessions of the Art Omi: Architecture, Art Omi: Artists, and Art Omi: Writers residency programs!

Through a competitive jury process, residents are invited to attend Art Omi’s residencies at no cost to themselves, apart from travel. Residents have the time and space to hone their own craft while making connections with artists from around the globe and living in a vibrant community. Abundant, catered meals and comfortable, beautiful lodgings are provided on Art Omi’s bucolic campus located in New York’s Hudson Valley, two hours north of New York City. Art Omi is home to the Sculpture & Architecture Park situated amidst 120 acres of fields and forests and offers Architecture and Artists residents dedicated studio space in our Studio Barn.

📐 Art Omi: Architecture is the first residency program of its kind in the nation, inviting ten early- to mid-career architects from around the world to develop their work during a two week residency in May and June. Art Omi: Architecture aims to nurture experimentation at the intersection of architecture, art, and landscape.

🎨 Art Omi: Artists invites artists from around the world, representing a wide diversity of artistic styles and practices, to gather for four weeks in June and July to experiment, collaborate, and share ideas. Concentrated time for artistic practice is balanced with the stimulation of creative community and critical appraisal.

📚 Art Omi: Writers hosts authors and translators for two weeks to one month throughout the spring and autumn. The program’s strong international emphasis provides exposure for global literary voices and reflects the spirit of cultural exchange that is essential to Art Omi’s mission.

There is no fee to apply to the open call.

The deadline to apply is Tuesday, October 15, 2024 by 11:59 PM EST.

Challenging Words:
A Conversation Between Translator & Author Daniel Hahn & Lilit Thwaites [Recorded]

Photo © John Lawrence, 2015

Daniel HAHN OBE is an award-winning writer, editor and translator with about a hundred books to his name. Recent books include Catching Fire: A Translation Diary, and translations of work by Gonçalo M. Tavares and Juan José Millás. He is a past chair of the Society of Authors (the writers’ union of the UK) and the Translators Association, and serves on the board of a number of organisations working with literature, literacy and free expression. He is one of the editors of the  The Ultimate Book Guide, a series of reading guides for children and teenagers, and the author of Happiness Is a Watermelon on Your Head, a picture book for children. He is currently compiling a collection of Brazilian short stories, translating a Colombian classic and writing a book about Shakespeare. https://www.danielhahn.co.uk/

Lilit Žekulin THWAITES is an award-winning Australian literary translator (Spanish>English), an Adjunct Professor in contemporary Spanish literature at La Trobe University, and current President of the Australian Association for Literary Translation (AALITRA). Her book translations include the bestselling The Librarian of Auschwitz, Australian Connection , and two futuristic novels by Rosa Montero, Tears in Rain, and Weight of the Heart. Her translations of short stories, essays and poetry have been published in journals and anthologies. She presents sessions at writers’ festivals, gives talks about Spain and translation, and helps organise visits to Australia by Spanish-speaking writers. She is currently translating Luisa Etxenike’s Cruzar el agua. In 2016, she received Spain’s Cross of the Order of Civil Merit for her promotion of Spain’s literatures and cultures in Australia. https://zhuktranslations.com/;   https://scholars.latrobe.edu.au/lmthwaites

Please see the link to the LCNAU database below:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Mu5WaAooAe1CTj5hjp3gbw-vau1QCyqjTkld3_Eu0KM/edit

Rhyme and Reason in Dante and the difficulty of translation: A talk by Simon West

13 June 2023

Thanks to those who attended this event, which was organised by AALITRA in assocation with COAS.IT and the Dante Alighieri Socety.

Thanks to Di Cousens for taking photos.

The Jan Michalski Foundation’s residency for writers is designed to provide an environment for creative writing and to support those involved in the written word.

Applications for 2024 are now open and will be accepted until September 14, 2023.

More info: https://fondation-janmichalski.com/en/residences

More info here: https://www.csaa.org.au/2023/02/call-for-submission-2023-csaa-aalitra-chinese-english-translation-competition/#:~:text=The%20winning%20entry%20will%20receive,at%20CSAA%20in%20December%202023.