Bard College Berlin Presents

LitFest 2023: Poetry & Politics – Reading and Conversation (Yang Lian & Nhã Thuyên)

Authors Yang Lian (Switzerland/China) & Nhã Thuyên (Vietnam) will discuss the topic of Poetry & Politics – Reading and Conversation as part of LitFest 2023. Both authors will read poetry from their recently published books and discuss topics such as writing in exile, translation, and publishing poetry across borders and languages.

Moderators: Ewa Atanassow & Miyu Sasaki
Language: English, Chinese, Vietnamese

About Yang Lian: Yang Lian is a Chinese poet who, since 1989, has been living in exile. Born in Bern in 1955 to Chinese diplomats, he grew up in Beijing and emerged as a poet during the "Beijing Spring" (1978–1980). His extensive travels from 1978 to 1983 inspired major poetic works, including "Nuorilang." He gained recognition for his ‘modernistic’ poetry, which he published in the underground journal "Jintian." Yang Lian's literary prowess has earned him many awards, most recently the English PEN Award (2023) and the inaugural Sarah Maguire Prize for Poetry in Translation (2021).

About Nhã Thuyên: Nhã Thuyên, born in 1986 in northern Vietnam, is a poet, writer, and editor. She co-founded AJAR, a micro-bilingual literary journal promoting poetic expression. Nhã Thuyên often moves between languages, experimenting with translations and poetic forms. She recently curated an exhibition "tôi viết (tiếng Việt) / i write (in Vietnamese)" with works that question the possibilities of the Vietnamese language. Her book "vị nước" will be published soon. She lives in Hà Nội and is in Berlin as a DAAD Berlin Artist Fellow 2023.

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Time: 12:30 pm – 1:30 pm CET/GMT+1

Location: W15 Cafe (Waldstraße 15, 13156 Berlin, Germany)

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