Patras World Poetry Festival

DECEMBER 10th - 13th 2020

We would like to inform you that due to the implementation of a new lockdown in our country and the increase in the number of coronavirus cases, the organizing and scientific committee of the “Jean Moréas International Awards” and the Patras International Poetry Festival postpones the date of the event on December, 10-13 of 2020.

Digital Event

The Patras World Poetry Festival 2020 this year is entitled "National Poets" and plans to host 60 poets from 15 different countries around the world.

This year the festival be held online and virtually, as far as COVID-19 impact affects significantly the implementation of this event.

In the four-day online event there will be 6 meetings lasting up to 3 hours, where the guest poets will be presented with readings in 2 languages, via live connection. The events will be attended by invited representatives of institutions and the jury, while the program will include speeches, presentations, tributes, music, etc.

In addition, the following activities will take place within the schedule of the Festival events:

online Award of the annual Greek Poetry Awards "Jean Moréas" (Saturday December 12th)
Art Exhibition "National Poets" with the participation of 20 Greek artists and 10 artists from different countries (live and digital tour)
Collectible trilingual edition of the poems of the participants, in the first language of each artist, in Greek and English

The 3rd Patras World Poetry Festival 2020 is organized by the Poetry Fountation “Grafeion Poiiseos”, the literary website Culture Book (culturebook.gr) and the multicultural center Epikentro Plus History & Arts, while every year it is under the auspices of the Ministries of Culture and the Ministry of Tourism*. Supporters of the event are the Greek Library of London, the Cultural Center “Kostis Palamas”, the University of Western Macedonia, the Hellenic Open University and many other important institutions, as claimed under the Aegis of the President of the Hellenic Republic.

Awarding of Poetry Awards "Jean Moréas" for the year 2019

This annual event will be held digitally at one session of the PWPF Poetry Event 2020, with a presentation of the award-winning poets and recitations by them. This is the annual event during which the "Jean Moréas" Prizes are awarded for Greek poetic art and Greek poetic production in its entire range. They are recognizable nationwide and concern the poetry collections that were published throughout the previous calendar year from the year of the award. They refer both to young poets and newcomers and to those who are recognized with their poetic work along time.

The event is highly appreciated by the Greek literary and artistic circle of readers. In this year's event, in addition to the institutionalized awards, a very important foreign poet will be honored, who with his/her lifelong work honors the literature outside Greece.The Award Committee is composed of Greek University professors, as well as very important poets and poetry critics who will evaluate the work of the honorees.

Sincerely,

On behalf of the organizing committee.

Kotopoulos H. Triantafyllos, President of the “Patras World Poetry Festival”

Skiathas D. Antonis, President of the Poetry Fountation “Grafeion Poiiseos”

Alaniadi Maria, Event Manager of the “Patras World Poetry Festival”

Eftichia - Alexandra Loukidou, Greece

Participants PWPF 2023

Παρασκευή, 15 Σεπτεμβρίου 2023

0 Σχόλια

ALEXANDERPLATZ, BERLIN

Κανονικά, με λένε Σόνια.
Μίτσε, με βάφτισε ο Φραντς
̶ μονόχειρας, μα ξέρει ν' αγκαλιάζει.
Τη μέρα προτιμώ να υπνοβατώ.
Με ένα νόμισμα κρυμμένο στο μαντίλι
περνάω βιαστικά έξω από τα προάστια
σκιές ευκίνητες πουλώ στην Alexanderplatz
στα ενυδρεία σπάζω τις φυσαλίδες
κι αφού των πληκτικών επεισοδίων
διασχίζω την ομίχλη
βρίσκομαι σώα σαν νεκρή
στο τέλος της θλιμμένης ιστορίας.

Η πλατεία γέμισε μεμιάς αρωματοπωλεία.
Έξω απ' τις χαραμάδες των πληγών
πλημμύρα ακυβέρνητη
λεβάντα και θυμίαμα
γαζία και λιβάνι.

Όμως, εγώ
πάντοτε αλήθεια σού έλεγα, Φραντς.
Ω, μα και βέβαια μπορούσα
μόνο εσένα ν' αγαπώ
ο άλλος ήτανε παιδί, μπορεί και γέρος
μην τα σκαλίζεις τώρα πια
ήπιε απλώς ένα κονιάκ
έβαλε φωτιά στα μαλλιά της μαριονέτας
κι έπειτα εξαφανίστηκε.

Κι άφησε, Φραντς
τι θες κι ανοίγεις τώρα το πορτάκι
άστο μες στο κλουβί του το πουλί
μη μου το πνίγεις
πονάω, Φραντς, με σφίγγεις, Φραντς
χύθηκε κάτω όλο το νερό
ποτέ ξανά τιτίβισμα
ποτέ ξανά μισή αγκαλιά
γέμισε πούπουλα ο αέρας, Φραντς
δεν σε ακούω πια
πούπουλα και φτερά
δεν σε πονάω πια
μόνο φτερά
δεν με πειράζει τώρα πια…

Οι άνθρωποι στο δάσος
πεθαίνουν πάντα από ντροπή.
Το Επιδόρπιο, Κέδρος 2012

ALEXANDERPLATZ, BERLIN

Rightfully they call me Sonia.
Franz named me Mitse
― one-armed, he is, but how to embrace he knows.
In the day I prefer to sleepwalk.
With a coin hidden in a hankie
I walk quickly past the suburbs
I sell agile shadows in Alexanderplatz
I burst bubbles in aquariums
and having gone through the mist
of dreary happenings
I find myself safe like dead
at the end of the sad story.

Instantly the square filled with perfume shops.
Beyond the wounds' fissures
an unmanageable flood
lavender and frankincense
musk plant and inense.

But I, Franz,
always told you the truth.
Oh, but yes, only you
could I love
the other one was a lad, perhaps even an old man
don't rake up old affairs
he simply drank a brandy
set the puppet's hair on fire
and afterwards disappeared.

Come now, Franz,
why must you open the cage
let the bird stay there
don't smother it
I'm hurting, Franz, you're squeezing me, Franz
all the water is spilled on the floor
never again chirping
never again half a cuddle
the air is full of down, Franz
I can't hear you anymore
down and feathers
I don't feel for you anymore
feathers only
I don't mind anymore…

People in the forest
always die of shame.

(Translated from the Greek by Yannis Goumas)

ΣΧΕΔΙΟ ΔΙΑΣΩΣΗΣ

Χτυπώ τον χρόνο για να μπω
τη γυάλινή του συγκατάθεση γυρεύω
μήπως στεριώσει τούτη τη φορά
η επιστροφή στην ξενιτιά
μα δεν αναγνωρίζω τ' όνομά μου
ο αρχαίος τρόμος διέρχεται από τις αμυχές
κι αρνούμαι, αντιστέκομαι
το ρίγος να κατανοήσω
τυφλή κι αποχρωματισμένη
με την ηχώ γαμήλιων αποχαιρετισμών
κύκλους να κάνει γύρω μου
λες και το χάος ορίζεται
αν παρατηρηθεί.

Να ξεγλιστράς
αυτό μονάχα σώζει
φύλλα ευκαλύπτου να εισπνέεις
και σε υδάτινους ναούς
τις ρίζες σου ν' απλώνεις.
«Τον νυμφώνα σου βλέπω…»
κι αν δεις να κλαίει το παιδί
κράτησε την ανάσα σου
τραγούδησέ του ημερομηνίες παλιές
βοήθα το απ' την κορνίζα να κατέβει
βάλτο λέξεις αποδημητικές να συλλαβίσει
μην το ακούς
«και ένδυμα ουκ έχω ίνα εισέλθω εν αυτώ»
οι πιθανότητες είναι αρκετές
-να του εξηγήσεις-
κάποιος να σε προλάβει και…
πού θα πας νυχτιάτικα, μείνε εδώ, να πει
κι άλλωστε πόσο κρατάει η ζωή

αύριο χωριζόμαστε.
Αφόρετα θαύματα, Κέδρος 2017

PLAN OF ESCAPE

I knock on time to enter
looking for its glass consent
if by any chance going back to live abroad
takes root this time
but I can't recognize my name
the ancient terror passes through the scratches
and I refuse, I keep back from
understanding the quiver
blind and discoloured
wth the sound of nuptial farewells
making circles around me
as if the chaos is determined
if seen.

To dodge
is the only saving grace
to inhale eucalyptus leaves
and in aqueous churches
to spread your roots

"I see your nuptial chamber…"

and should you see the child crying
hold your breath
sing to it old dates
help it get down from the frame
make it syllabize migratory words
don't listen to it

"and no dress do I have to wear…"

there are enough chances
--explain to it--
for one to anticipate you and say
where are you going this time of night, stay here
and besides how long does life last

tomorrow we part.

UNWORN WONDERS, Kedros 2017
Translated from the Greek by Yannis Goumas

The Poetess

Eftichia-Alexandra Loukidou was born in Munich and is of Constantinopolitan descent . She lives in Thessaloniki where she studied at the Faculty of Philosophy, AUTH. She teaches creative writing in Thessaloniki and Cyprus.
POETRY: "Sad daisies", (1986), "The triptych of shimmer" (1993),"Momentous homecoming" (1999), "Let's Blossom till nothing" (Kastaniotis, 2004),"Basement level one" (Kastaniotis, 2008, 2nd ed. 2009), "The dessert" ( Kedros 2012, 2nd & 3rd ed.2013, Shortlisted for the National Literary Award),"Unworn Wonders" (Kedros, 2017), "The porter of days" (Kedros, 2022)
STUDY: "Face stitching. A visit to Orestis's Alexakis poetry" (Neos Astrolavos/Efthini 2012),"Beyond writing. Essays about Poetry", (Kedros 2015), "In the back gardens single word. Essays about Poetry", (Romi 2019)
She is a member of the Hellenic Authors' Society, of the Writers' Society Thessaloniki, of the 'Poets Circle'.
Her poems were translated into English, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Albanian, Bulgarian and are included in Greek and foreign anthologies.