The date and line-up for our autumn reading are now confirmed. It will be on Wednesday 26th October and the readers will be Jennifer Cooke, Colin Herd and SJ Fowler. Between now and then, we have Chris Goode, Jonny Liron and Tamarin Norwood on 20th July and David Berridge, Rachel Lois Clapham and Phil Terry on 24th August. All three events take place at our usual venue, The Old Abbey Inn on Manchester Science Park.
SJ Fowler
Maintenant #65: Marco Giovenale
There are figures emerging in European poetry that are defined by their refusal to be limited to one form of poetic, who increasingly maintain their central concerns across sound, visual and linguistic mediums. Then within this group, there are those who are breaking new ground, following in the footsteps of poets as agile as Apollinaire and Mallarmé, whose explicit concerns shed new light on what we might consider poetry. Marco Giovenale is one of the most gifted of Europe’s new breed of poets, and a leading practitioner in the field of asemic writing. The remarkable art of asemic text is one of the most enlivening areas of contemporary poetry – a wordless, semantic, post-lingual poetry that utilises the figuration and trace of handwriting and automatic writing to create superimposed abstract poems and ideograms of visual poetry. Drawing influence from postmodern Chinese calligraphy, the work of Brion Gysin, Roland Barthes, Henri Michaux, Christian Dotremont and others, and the field of undecipherable semiotics, asemic poetry is a beautiful and fascinating practise, and Marco Giovenale is one of the most talented and seminal artists in the field. A prolific journalist, publisher and critic and a respected performer across Europe, we are proud to welcome Marco Giovenale as our first Italian poet into the Maintenant series.
http://www.3ammagazine.com/3am/maintenant-65-marco-giovenale/
Accompanying the interview are eight of Marco’s poems.
Maintenant #63: Colin Herd
Inarguably symbolic of the dexterity and erudition of a new generation of Scottish poets, Colin Herd is an instantly memorable presence in the contemporary poetry scene north of the border. Deft, at times demure, urbane and insightful, his poetry is effusive in its grace and ease of motion. Yet Herd is a markedly energetic presence leading a resurgence of poetry in and around the city of Edinburgh. A critic of some note and already demanding a considerable following in both the UK and the United States (lauded by Dennis Cooper, amongst others) we are pleased he is our first Scots Maintenant inductee and another valuable addition to the growing record of contemporary European poetry.
http://www.3ammagazine.com/3am/maintenant-63-colin-herd/
Accompanying the interview are six of Colin’s poems.
http://www.3ammagazine.com/3am/six-poems-colin-herd/
It should also be mentioned Colin is going to be reading at the next Maintenant event in just under 3 weeks time.
Maintenant Slovakia
Maintenant Slovakia in association with Literature across Frontiers & Arc Publications
June Saturday 18th 2011 – 7pm – Entrance Free – The Rich Mix arts centre. London
Ivan Štrpka – Mila Haugova – Marcus Slease
Tamarin Norwood – Jonty Tiplady – Colin Herd …
Slovak poets Ivan Štrpka and Mila Haugova will be joined by a half dozen London-based poets to celebrate the sixth event in the Maintenant series held at the Rich Mix arts centre in London’s Brick Lane. As ever, the Maintenant series will advocate a diverse selection of poetic methodologies, ages & nationalities – collecting together some of the most interesting performers Europe has to offer. Further details to follow…
http://www.maintenant.co.uk
http://www.youtube.com/maintenantpoetry
http://soundcloud.com/maintenant
Maintenant #62: Pekko Käppi
Pekko Käppi is a balladeer, in the very purest sense a poet. A linguistic artisan and communicator, Käppi’s practise serves not only to preserve elements of his heritage, through his repatriation of Finnish ballads and folk songs and his mastery of the Jouhikko, but to explore the newest and most exciting areas of the sonic, and vitally, the linguistic. His poetry and music cannot be limited to a single genre as it cannot, should not, be limited to a single medium. A vital representation of Maintenant’s aim to display all forms of poetic, with Pekko Käppi and our 62nd edition we are perhaps returning to the very root of poetry.
http://www.3ammagazine.com/3am/maintenant-62-pekko-kappi/
Accompanying the interview is a unique sample of Pekko’s work. Three sound files of his songs Mariainen, Sonja & Vuonna 86 are available to play along with their text in both Finnish and English, and an introduction to the song’s meaning and historical context by Pekko himself.
Maintenant #61: Marcus Slease
Though the Maintenant series tries not to overstate the importance of the poet’s origin, practicality alone demands an attempt to show the range of European poetries with a representative range of nations. However in actually seeking out those poets creating exciting, original, genuinely evolutionary work, we find many cannot be tied to one single nation – they are migratory, multi-lingual – pan-European if not pan-global. Marcus Slease fits this archetype more than most. By birth he stands as the first Northern Irish poet to feature in our series. However by experience he is a poet of England, America, Poland, Italy, Turkey. Unsurprisingly he is an adroit and worldly writer, defined by his ability to remain elastic and fluid, and utterly unpretentious in his idiom, and yet fulfilling and resonant in his tone. His poetics are extremely contemporary, and yet they seem to maintain the confidence and solidity of time past. A major feature of the current London scene, we are pleased to introduce Marcus Slease as the 61st edition of Maintenant.
http://www.3ammagazine.com/3am/maintenant-61-marcus-slease/
Accompanying the interview are six of Marcus’ poems.
Maintenant #60: Luljeta Lleshanaku
It is hard to make a case against Luljeta Lleshanaku being the greatest Albanian poet of the modern era. Such is the measure of her work, and her repute across Europe and America. Her poetry reflects her marked humility and reverence for the written word, utterly unique and yet universal in a way that belies the overuse of that concept. Though a child of political exile and marginalization, let alone physical danger, her work remains dignified and singular, and nor does she allow her poetry to be dominated by the issues of her nation, of it’s politics and history. She is a voice that would be recognized as truly poetic in any language, in any setting and this perhaps her most remarkable achievement. A winner of the International Kristal Vilenica prize (following the likes of Peter Handke, Zbigniew Herbert & Milan Kundera) it is wonderful to announce her first work published in the UK will be released this September with Bloodaxe Books, already a Poetry Book Society Recommended Translation, and she will be attending this year’s Aldeburgh poetry festival in November . It is honour to introduce the 60th edition of Maintenant, a pioneer of Balkan poetry and a rightfully major figure in the current European poetry landscape.
http://www.3ammagazine.com/3am/maintenant-60-luljeta-lleshanaku/
Accompanying the interview are eight of Luljeta’s poems, translated by Ani Gjika.
http://www.3ammagazine.com/3am/eight-poems-luljeta-lleshanaku/
Maintenant #59: Gabriele Labanauskaite
It appears self-evident that poetry is remarkably pliant, elastic and apt for innovation. As a sonic artform, poetry, in it‘s truest sense, grows as each individual practitioner allows themselves to explore their own culture, and so from certain artists there arrives unique and memorable experiments within the medium. For the Lithuanian poetry scene, it is Gabriele Labanauskaite who leads the way. Assured, intelligent and engaging, her sonic art is poetry, song & performance. Though a versatile poet, playwright & singer, she is renowned for her fusion of spoken poetry, music and sound, often as part of the collective AVaspo. Her work is explosive as well as satirical, wise as well as energetic and she embraces technological innovation while absorbing a myriad of aesthetics. She is the final poet representing the Maintenant Lithuania events held in London during April 2011 and we are delighted to welcome her as our 59th interviewee and poet.
http://www.3ammagazine.com/3am/maintenant-59-gabriele-labanauskaite/<
Accompanying the interview are ten of Gabriele’s poems, translated Translated by Ada Valaitis and Kenneth Smallwood.
http://www.3ammagazine.com/3am/ten-poems-gabriele-labanauskaite/
{Maintenant Slovakia in association with Literature across Frontiers & Arc Publications}June Saturday 18th 2011 – 7pm – Entrance Free – The Rich Mix arts centre. LondonSlovak poets Ivan ��trpka and Mila Haugova will be joined by a half dozen London-based poets to celebrate the sixth event in the Maintenant series held at the Rich Mix arts centre in London’s Brick Lane. As ever, the Maintenant series will advocate a diverse selection of poetic methodologies, ages & nationalities – collecting together some of the most interesting poets Europe has to offer. Further details to follow…
Maintenant #58: Nikola Madzirov
The birth of a major European poet is often heralded long after the fact by his or her emergence into the American poetic consciousness. The rapturous reception that has awaited Nikola Madzirov as he has travelled the US has only served to confirm what many already knew – Macedonia has produced a poet whose significance is undeniable, and whose gift is indelible. Nikola Madzirov is a poet who can look eye to eye with the great figures of the 20th century, he is one of our generations luminaries. His poetry is deft, sure and canny, he wields a wry and wise and often elusive aesthetic and while Peter Boyle has rightly traced his line back to Vasko Popa, Milosz, Herbert & Zagajewski, his voice is absolutely his own, absolutely of this generation. It is apt to leave the final words on Madzirov to Adam Zagajewski himself – “Madzirov’s poems are like Expressionist paintings: filled with thick, energetic streaks they seem to emerge from the imagination and to return to it right away, like night animals caught in the headlights of a car. “We are the remnants of another age” — Nikola Madzirov succeeds in convincing us.” For the 58th edition of Maintenant, we are very pleased to welcome our first Macedonian poet.
http://www.3ammagazine.com/3am/maintenant-58-nikola-madzirov/
Accompanying the interview are five of Nikola’s poems, translated translated by Peggy and Graham W. Reid, Magdalena Horvat and Adam Reed taken from the book
Remnants of Another Age published by BOA Editions
http://www.3ammagazine.com/3am/five-poems-nikola-madzirov/
Some more of Nikola’s poems have recently appeared in the latest issues of “American Poetry Review” and “The Wolf” poetry magazine, and the poem “After Us” was just announced as a poem of a day in US by the Academy of American Poets – poets.org:
Maintenant #57: Tomas S. Butkus
The impression left on the audience attending the Maintenant Lithuania events held over the weekend of April 8th only served to confirm Tomas S. Butkus’ reputation as one of the most complex and creative poets currently at work in the unusually healthy Lithuanian poetry scene. Sometimes seen as an irreverent and idiosyncratic poet, due perhaps his use of many mediums (text, video, sonic art, collage), his membership in an experimental art performance collective or his distinctive use of surrealist imagery – his work in fact continues the revolutionary underground spirit of creativity that underpinned some of the greatest poetry Europe produced while Lithuania was under Soviet occupation. Perhaps rather Butkus’ work stands out from a certain contemporary style (reformed, controlled and meditative) by virtue of its energy and individuality. And without doubt, as the people attending Europe House and the Rich Mix arts centre discovered, the man is equal to his work. Celebrating the Maintenant Lithuania project and our 57th edition, we welcome Tomas S. Butkus,
http://www.3ammagazine.com/3am/maintenant-57-%e2%80%93-tomas-s-butkus/
Accompanying the interview are five of Tomas’ poems, translated by Kerry Shawn Keys, Edgaras Platelis, Becka Mara Mckay, Gerrie Fellows & Jake MB Levine
http://www.3ammagazine.com/3am/five-poems-tomas-s-butkus/
Huge thanks to everyone who attended and performed at Europe House in Westminster and the Rich mix arts centre in Brick Lane for the Maintenant Lithuania events last weekend. Both nights were fantastic, memorable for the quality of the work on display and the atmosphere generated by those who were kind enough to attend. Pictures and sound recordings of both events will be online soon, and the Rich mix event was filmed by the BBC for an upcoming cultural arts feature program. Special thanks to Gabriele Labanauskaite, Tomas Butkus, Donatas Petrosius and Daiva Parulskiene. Our next event looks to be in June, most likely Maintenant Slovakia.
Maintenant #52: Cia Rinne
A poet whose work is as multifaceted and wide-ranging as her own European character, Cia Rinne is an unforgettable poet, artist and thinker. Born in Sweden, raised in Germany, before living for over a decade in Finland and then Denmark, her aptitude for languages includes writing in French and English, as well as speaking Greek, Romanian, Spanish, Italian… and on the list goes. Her unique and cultivated ability to utilise such a multitude of languages creates an idiosyncratic poetic idiom, one that is truly refined and multifarious at its root. She matches this sensitivity with a remarkably immediate visual poetic style. If we had to choose a representative for the Maintenant series and it’s aims, perhaps the true intricacy of Cia Rinne’s work would make her one of the most viable candidates.
http://www.3ammagazine.com/3am/maintenant-52-cia-rinne/<
Accompanying the interview are five of Cia's poems.
http://www.3ammagazine.com/3am/five-poems-cia-rinne/
Here too is the sixth of the bi-monthly article series with Nthposition.com focused on unjustly overlooked European poets, this edition, the Sicilian symbolist Lucio Piccolo. http://www.nthposition.com/reilluminations6lucio.php
We have finalised the next Maintenant reading program, as part of the Lithuanian Declassified Arts project. http://www.lithuanianembassy.co.uk/index.php?-157739503
3am magazine & the Maintenant series presents in conjunction with Europe house presents
Nauja Poezija: Young Lithuanian & British poets in collaboration
April Friday 8th – 7pm – Entrance free to all (32 Smith Square, London SW1P)
We welcome three of Lithuania’s finest young poets to London with a reception at Europe House and an exchange of poetry from some of the finest native poets the city has to offer. Alongside Donatas Petrošius, Gabriele Labanauskaite and Tomas S. Butkus, a half dozen resident poets, featuring Agnes Lehoczky, Jeff Hilson, Jon Shaw, Tim Atkins, Kate Kililea and more will read short excerpts from their work.
3am magazine & the Maintenant series presents in conjunction with the Rich Mix presents
Declassified: Lithuanian & British poets in collaboration
April Saturday 9th – 7pm – Entrance free to all
(35 – 47 Bethnal Green Road, London, E1 6LA www.richmix.org.uk)
Tim Atkins & Tomas S. Butkus
Donatas Petrošius & Chris McCabe
Jeremy Reed & Gabriele Labanauskaite
A unique evening of exchange and collaboration between six of the finest poets in Europe communicating the rare command of their poetry, highlighting their shared engagement along with their own distinctive understanding of what is poetic.
http://www.youtube.com/maintenantpoetry
http://soundcloud.com/maintenant
SJ Fowler – Yurriokis Gamboa
Part of Steve Fowler’s cycle based around the life of boxers, now available as an ebook on Red Ceilings press. Read it here.
otherroom.org 