poem
by Matilde Espinosa
Matilde Espinosa was born in Tierradentro, a small town in southwestern
Colombia, in 1917. She lived part of her adult life in Paris, returning
to Colombia after World War II. Among other things she is known
for her public activism at mid-century, when she campaigned for
women's right to vote.
Espinosa has used poetry as a space for exploring contradictory
aspects of life in the past century. She is particularly known for
her writings about inequality, dependence, and injustice, focusing
attention on poverty and gender. Her poems often contrast these
forces to the surrounding beauty of Colombian landscapes. "Llueve"
can be read either as a meditation on individual or social death.
Among her many books are La ciudad entra en la noche (2001), La
sombra en el muro (1997), Señales de sombra (1996), Los héroes
perdidos (1994), Estación desconocida (1990), Memoria del
viento (1987), El mundo es una calle larga (1976), Pasa el viento
(1970), Afuera las estrellas (1961), Por todos los silencios (1958),
and Los ríos han crecido (1955).
poem
translated by Kristin Dykstra
Kristin Dykstra is currently working on translations of contemporary poetry by Cuban poets Ángel Escobar and Omar Pérez. Two recent books featuring her translations and criticism are Something of the Sacred / Algo de lo sagrado (poetry by Omar Pérez, 2007) and an updated edition of La detención del tiempo / Time's Arrest (poetry by Reina María Rodríguez, 2005). Another book by Rodríguez, The Winter Garden Photograph / La foto del invernadero, is forthcoming from Green Integer. Dykstra co-edits the cross-cultural, multilingual journal Mandorla: New Writing from the Americas / Nueva escritura de las Américas with Roberto Tejada (San Diego, CA) and Gabriel Bernal Granados (México DF).
Website w/ CV: Dr. Dykstra
lili
maya is an artist working/teaching in Baltimore:
www.lilimaya.net
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