The cover of Zbigniew Herbert's "The Collected Prose, 1948-1998", published by Ecco Press in 2010
New York's Poets House hosts an evening dedicated to the vision of Zbigniew Herbert
Renowned poets
Adam Zagajewski, Edward Hirsch, Charles Simic and translator Alissa Valles pay tribute to the poetic legacy of
Zbigniew Herbert (1924-1998) and his witty, probing works of prose on travel, classical literature and visual arts.
Named "one of Poland's most honored and influential poets" by the Library Journal, Zbigniew Herbert has earned world-wide acclaim for the ironic, politically-aware tone which was shaped by his experiences under both Nazi and Soviet dictatorships. Herbert was also the author of four collections of dazzling essays, which display his signature wit, irony and perceptive eye in musings on ancient civilizations, philosophical parables, investigations of art, culture and history inspired by journeys in France, Italy and the Netherlands, and other subjects. The essays in the new volume, The Collected Prose, 1948-1998 (Ecco Press 2010), provide particular insight into Herbert's sense of European identity as well as the detached stance of his narrative alter-ego "Mr. Cogito."
Alissa Valles is the editor and co-translator of The Collected Poems, 1956-1998, and The Collected Prose, 1948-1998 by Zbigniew Herbert, and the author of the poetry collection Orphan Fire (2008). She is joined by
Adam Zagajewski , born in Poland in 1945. Zagewski became widely known in the US when his poem Try to Praise the Mutilated World offered consolation to a country under attack from the back page of the 9/11 issue of The New Yorker with its black-on-black cover. Since 2002 he has been splitting his time between Kraków and the US, in recent years serving as a visiting professor on the Committee on Social Thought at the University of Chicago. Volumes of his poetry published in English include: Tremor,Canvas, Mysticism for Beginners, and Without End. Four collections of essays have also been published: Solidarity, Solitude, Two Cities, Another Beauty, and A Defense of Ardor. In 2004, he was awarded the Neustadt International Prize for Literature.
Edward Hirsch has published several books of poems (Special Orders) and many books of prose about poetry, including the national bestseller How to Read a Poem and Fall in Love with Poetry. Hirsch is currently the president of the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation.
Charles Simic has published numerous translations and over twenty books of his own verse, including the Pulitzer Prize-winning The World Doesn't End. He is a former Poet Laureate and a winner of a MacArthur Foundation award, among other honors.
"A Poet's Prose: The Poetic Vision of Zbigniew Herbert" takes place at the Poets House on Thursday, March 24 at 19:00.
Poets House
10 River Terrace, New York, NY
Tel: 212.431.7920
www.poetshouse.org
Source:
www.polishculture-nyc.org