Arts Flanders Literature

Flemish graphic novelists make a splash at Angoulême

vfl — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 11:15:25 +0000

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The Flemish representation at the 39th edition of the international comic festival in Angoulême made more of a splash than ever. Like last year, authors Brecht Evens and Olivier Schrauwen were nominated for prestigious prizes, the annual Flemish Party was a resounding success and the Flemish were everywhere in the French press. The Flemish Literature Fund (FLF) looks back at a successful festival.

In 2009, Flanders hosted Europe's biggest comic festival. It was not long before everyone was talking about the work of young Brecht Evens, one of the twenty graphic novelists the FLF presented at the central exhibition ‘Ceci n'est pas la BD flamande’ [These are not Flemish comics]. Olivier Schrauwen, whose ‘My boy’ had by then already been translated into French, Finish and German, was one of the most feted graphic artists at the highly enjoyable exhibition.

Last year, Evens was awarded the Prix de l'Audace in Angoulême for the French translation of ‘Ergens waar je niet wil zijn’ [The Wrong Place] (Oogachtend), which launched his international career. In addition to France, the book has been published in Canada, Great Britain, Germany and Spain and is due out in Korea in the spring. Most of Evens’ publishers also signed the nominated title, ‘De liefhebbers’ [The Making Of], which is certain to attract interest in many other countries.

At just 25, Evens has star status among French and international graphic novel readers. The queues were long at his table for book signing at the French publisher Actes Sud’s stand and the Flemish stand. A total of 6,500 copies of ‘Les Amateurs’ was sold, which means a second impression of the title. Actes Sud sold 200 copies of the highly-praised album and at the Flemish stand another hundred plus changed hands.

An exceptionally commending article in the French quality daily ‘Le Monde’ undoubtedly helped sales. It commented that it can’t have been easy for the jury to choose between the 5,000 titles published in French this year. It went on to name a number of titles the paper felt stood a chance of winning a prize, such as Craig Thompson’s ‘Habibi’ and Etienne Davodeau’s ‘Les Ignorants’. “But Belgian Brecht Evens’ ‘Les Amateurs’ is certainly not to be missed. … This is the kind of book you start leafing through in the bookshop and then can’t put down". Praise was then heaped on Evens himself and his graphic novels.

Olivier Schrauwen was nominated for the third time for the prestigious prizes in Angoulême: Last year, the French translation of his ‘De man die zijn baard liet groeien’ [The Man Who Let His Beard Grow] (Bries) was nominated, and in 2007 his debut ‘My boy’ (Bries). This year, his exceptionally beautiful ‘Le miroir de Mowgli’ [Mowgli’s Mirror] was released by the independent French publishers Ouvroir Humoir. In the end, Schrauwen was not awarded a prize, even though he was more or less expected to. Art Spiegelman, jury chairman and American author of ‘Maus’, talks in the January issue of the French magazine ‘Zoo’ of the European graphic novel as a significant source of inspiration and mentions Olivier Schrauwen in the same breath as Javier Mariscal, Lorenzo Mattotti, Moebius, Lewis Trondheim, Jacques Tardi and José Muñoz.

Olivier Schrauwen’s work is appreciated and admired by many of his colleagues. He is also the most translated of all Flemish authors from the 2009 exhibition. His work has been translated into English, French, German, Finish, Polish, Spanish and Italian and publications are soon due out in Norwegian.

After five years of active promotion, the tally for graphic novel translations with support from the FLF currently stands at forty-two. The FLF had more than thirty meetings with international publishers and strip festival organisers at Angoulême. New work was shown, but discussions were above all about all projects still in the pipeline. The majority concerned ‘Toen David zijn stem verloor’ [When David Lost his Voice] (Oog en Blik), the new book by Judith Vanistendael. Le Lombard published the title in France simultaneously with the Dutch edition and it has received nothing but rave reviews. Vanistendael was invited to draw both the cover and the cartoon for Thursday’s Angoulême special edition of ‘Le Charante Libre’, which also featured an interview with her. Great publicity, as the paper, which is distributed during the festival, is to be found everywhere in the city.

And the Flemish made even more of a splash. On Thursday evening, the FLF organised a Flemish Party together with the Strip Turnhout festival organisers, the distribution company Pinceel Stripverspreiding, the Flemish Representation in Paris and Flanders Investment and Trade (FIT). The three authors who travelled to Angoulême with the FLF - Leen Van Hulst, Ivan Adriaenssens and Wauter Mannaert – designed an invitation in the shape of a beer mat and illustrator Jan Van Der Veken acted as DJ. There was a tremendous attendance, with more than 300 publishers, journalists and other professionals.

Earlier that evening, Nix, the author of ‘Kinky and Cosy’, was on stage during the festival's opening ceremony, dressed as one of his characters. He announced that an animated series based on his popular cartoons will be ready by the end of the year. The French-Belgian co-production of 500 short films will be recorded in English and offered for sale worldwide. The first edition of ‘Kinky & Cosy’ made the New York Times bestsellers list in 2011.

The FLF announced that it would be the fourth and last time it was to present its popular sales stand at Angoulême in the form of a café. The big and beautifully decorated sales stand, ‘Café BD Chez les flamands’, in the safe hands of the Antwerp comic shop Mekanik-Strip, was particularly admired for the originality and high quality of the books it was selling: original graphic novels and translated work by Flemish authors.

Next year, the FLF will, naturally, again be present at Angoulême. Meetings with international graphic novel publishers are essential, but the FLF also attaches a great deal of importance to the visibility of Flemish graphic novels at the festival. It is hoped that the Flemish government will continue to support the FLF's efforts in promoting Flemish graphic novels internationally. There is no doubt that the fund’s prominent presence at Angoulême over the past four years has been fruitful.

Literature

Ivo Michiels receives America Award 2012

vfl — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 16:19:59 +0000

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Ivo Michiels has received the America Award 2012 from The Contemporary Arts Educational Project for his lifetime contribution to international writing.It is the first time in its history that the prize has been awarded to a Flemish author.

The America Award, which describes itself as a modest attempt at providing alternatives to the Nobel Prize in Literature, was first presented in 1994.Each year, the jury comprises 6 to 8 American poets, prose writers, playwrights and literary critics.This year, it consisted of Paul Vangelisti (poet and translator), Marjorie Perloff (critic and professor of literature at Stanford University), Deborah Meadows (poet), Mac Wellman (playwright, author and poet), Martin Nakell (professor of literature and poetry and fiction author), and Douglas Messerli, secretary.The award does not entail any prize money.

Here are just a few from the impressive list of past winning authors:Harold Pinter (1995), Friederike Mayröcker (1997), Rafael Alberti (1998), Jacques Roubaud (1999), Peter Handke (2002), Adonis (2003), José Saramago (2004), Andrea Zanzotto (2005), John Ashbery (2008), Günter Kunert (2009) and Javier Marias (2010).

2011 saw the publication of Ivo Michiels’ ‘Mag ik spreken?’[May I Speak?], in which his ten-part novel cycle ‘Journal Brut’ (1983-2001) has been forged into a new, accessible whole.For this book, Michiels chose the most important, most beautiful and most striking passages from the cycle, as he believes strongly in the vitality and eternal changeability of a literary text.

‘Journal brut’ was preceded by the ‘Alfacycle’, of which the first two parts, the ‘Book Alpha’ and ‘Orchis Militaris’, will soon be published in an English translation by the American publishing house Green Integer, with support from the Flemish Literature Fund.The same publishing house is also planning to release the other three parts:‘Exit’, ‘Samuel o Samuel’ and ‘Dixi(t)’.

Ivo Michiels’ books are published in the original language by De Bezige Bij.

Ivo Michiels (1923) is an honorary member of the Royal Academy of Dutch Language and Literature and in 1993 he received an honorary doctorate from the Catholic University of Brussels.He has received many awards both in Belgium and internationally, including the Flemish State Prize for Prose and the three-yearly Flemish Community Prize.

Literature

Vondel Translation Prize goes to Paul Vincent

vfl — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 15:14:41 +0000

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The jury for the Vondel Translation Prize 2011 has awarded the prize to Paul Vincent for 'My Little War', his English translation of Louis Paul Boon's 'Mijn kleine oorlog'. The jury consisted of critic Paul Binding ('Times Literary Supplement') and translators Ina Rilke and Sam Garrett. The runner-up is David Colmer for 'The Portrait', his translation of 'Specht en zoon' by Willem Jan Otten.

'My Little War'was published in the United States in 2010 by Dalkey Archive Press, and is the first English translation of Louis Paul Boon's 1947 novel. The translation was financially supported by the Flemish Literature Fund.

The other titles on the shortlist were: Marjolijn Februari – 'The Book Club' (Paul Vincent); Leon de Winter – 'God's Gym' (Jeannette Ringold); Anna Enquist – 'Counterpoint'(Jeannette Ringold); Dimitri Verhulst, 'Madame Verona Comes Down the Hill' (David Colmer); Douwe Draaisma – 'Disturbances of the Mind' (Barbara Fasting); and Margriet de Moor –'The Storm' (Carol Brown Janeway).

The Vondel Translation Prize is a biennial award for the best book translation into British or American English of a Dutch-language work of literature or cultural history. The award was established by the Society of Authors and is funded by the Dutch Foundation for Literature and the Flemish Literature Fund. The winner receives a prize of € 5000.

The prize will be presented on 6 February 2012 at Kings Place in London, together with a number of other European translation awards.

> A list of Paul Vincent's translations can be found in the translations database...

Literature

Culture Fund awards Martinus Nijhoff Prize to Frans Denissen

vfl — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 10:42:27 +0000

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On 18 November, in Amsterdam, the Prince Bernhard Culture Fund awarded the 2012 Martinus Nijhoff Prize / Prince Bernhard Culture Fund Prize for Translations to Frans Denissen. He is being awarded the prize of EUR 35,000 for his translations of Italian literature into Dutch. The award ceremony will take place during the national translation event ‘Nederland Vertaalt’ [The Netherlands Translates].

Frans Denissen’s first literary translation from Italian was published in 1982. His magnum opus ‘De leerschool van het lijden’, his translation of Gadda’s ‘Lacognizione del dolore’ [Acquainted With Grief], appeared in 2011. In the intervening three decades, Denissen produced a body of translation works of an exceptional quality. His translations include the mediaeval classic ‘Decamerone’ by Giovanni Boccaccio, prose by prominent 20th-century authors such as Leonardo Sciascia, Curzio Malaparte and Umberto Eco, the modernistic masterpieces of Carlo Emilio Gadda and the great poetry of Cesare Pavese and Eugenio Montale.

Denissen’s translation work demonstrates not only his precise knowledge of Italian and all its jargons, registers and dialects, but also his unmistakable authorship. He succeeds in lending the Dutch language an extraordinary richness and flexibility. The Martinus Nijhoff Prize jury unanimously decided to recommend Frans Denissen to the board of the Culture Fund for the 2012 Martinus Nijhoff Prize for his carefully built oeuvre of translation work in which the translator has focused on outstanding literary quality. The jury consisted of Ria van Hengel, Cees Koster, Linda Pennings, Annelies Schulte Nordholt and Willem Weststeijn (chair).

The Martinus Nijhoff Prize is the most prestigious Dutch award for translators. The Prince Bernhard Culture Fund has given the award annually since 1955. On 25 February 2012 the Culture Fund is organising the national translation event ‘Nederland Vertaalt’ [The Netherlands Translates], at which Frans Denissen will be presented with the award.

Literature

Prix des Phares du Nord 2011 goes to Bertrand Abraham

vfl — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 09:29:31 +0000

The 2011 Prix des Phares du Nord jury has awarded the prize to Bertrand Abraham for his French translation of Gerard Reve’s ‘Op weg naar het einde’ [On the Way to the End], (En route vers la fin, Paris: Phébus, 2010). This year, the jury consisted of Danielle Bourgois, Anita Concas and Margot Dijkgraaf.

The Prix des Phares du Nord is a bi-annual award for the best French translation of an important Dutch-language work. The prize is offered by the Netherlands Foundation for Literature and the Flemish Literature Fund. As guest of honour at the Salon du Livre in Paris in 2003 the two bodies presented themselves, literally, under the name of ‘The Beacons of the North’. The award includes a prize of € 5,000. The first winner, in 2005, was Philippe Noble, the second, in 2007, Annie Kroon and the third, in 2009, Anita Concas.

Bertrand Abraham (1948) lectures in French literature and has been a literary translator from Dutch to French since 2001. He studied under Roland Barthes, for example, and has published articles in various linguistic magazines and on the web. In addition to the Gerard Reve title he has translated works by Gerbrand Bakker, Renate Dorrestein, Douwe Draaisma, Maarten 't Hart, Franse Kellendonk and Geert Mak, amongst others.

The 2011 Prix des Phares du Nord will be awarded on 11 January 2012 in Paris.

Literature

Paul Bogaert wins the 2010-2011 Culture Prize for Poetry

vfl — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 09:26:41 +0000

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The various prestigious prizes the Flemish Community awards are quality labels and acknowledge the cultural importance of the work of the laureates.They also serve to stimulate the various cultural disciplines and increase cultural awareness.Starting with the 2010 - 2011 season, the Flemish Culture Prizes are spotlighting the various sectors in a new style, with presentations at sector events.On Tuesday 8 November, at the Antwerp Book Fair the 2010-2011 Culture Prize for Poetry was awarded to Paul Bogaert for his collection ‘de Slalom soft’ [The Slalom Soft].

The jury consisted of Elke Brems (chair), Piet Joostens, Xavier Roelens and Sieglinde Vanhaezebroeck.They summed up Bogaert's anthology as follows:

In the anthology ‘The Slalom Soft,’ Paul Bogaert examines our society in the ‘closed, immense complex’ of a subtropical swimming paradise, a heated cloche over ‘a commotion of limbs and meeting techniques’.People long for paradise, but that longing results in a close, stuffy, banal resort.Where an accident then takes place.The lifeguard, the guardian of the system in which the swimmers put their confidence turns out to be only human, too.His ‘convoluted choreography with the long scoop net' is not enough to save someone from drowning.The rules that appear to hold the organisation together do not help to keep it on its feet.

With this, his fourth anthology, Paul Bogaert confirms his great talent.He exposes the routine character of our society with the sharpness of a filleting knife:The trite language, the superficial interaction, the apparent safety of the cloche we have placed over ourselves.Contemporary anxiety, longing and the desire to control:Those are the themes of this anthology.We recognise our own monotonous life and the clichés we used to justify the situation.

Paul Bogaert does not hurl accusations at social wrongs from the sideline or from an ivory tower.He shows both sides of the coin, from an insider’s point of view.As the reader, you are manoeuvred into an awkward position.The double irony provides you with the opportunity to put things into perspective and then you are immediately confronted with that urge to rationalise.The undertone is cool, but on the surface the sparks are flying.There is sweating and itching, panting and puking, swallowing and gagging.In the swimming paradise you are at closer quarters with your fellow man than you would like to be.

Bogaert’s language is light and playful.He touches on Van Ostaijen and Goethe, but draws just as easily on the jargon of brainstorming advertising executives and hollow, mass communication.He also uses his website and a live performance with a speaker and two actors to give that language an extra life, providing new access routes to his poetry.The jury praised not only the consistency of ‘The Slalom Soft’ but also the anthology’s place in an increasingly strong body of works.

Literature

Three graphic novelists receive FLF grant to attend Angoulême

vfl — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 09:22:40 +0000

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The Flemish Literature Fund (FLF) will be taking three graphic novelists to the Angoulême international comic festival in 2012. Wauter Mannaert, Leen Van Hulst and Ivan Adriaenssens will be staying in the French comic capital from 26 to 29 January 2012. The FLF is awarding this grant to encourage comic artists to visit the comic Mecca and investigate on the spot the opportunities for international publication of their work.

The FLF is building on its success attendance in 2009 as guest of honour at the Festival International de la Bande Dessinée d’Angoulême. Since then, no fewer than thirty-four translations of graphic novels have been published with support from the FLF. This is the last time the FLF will open the doors of its 'Café BD Chez les Flamands'. The café is a meeting place for Flemish and international publishers. Authors come and sign their work and original and translated graphic novels are for sale.

The FLF foreign rights manager has meetings at the stand with foreign publishers and festival organisers throughout the entire festival. In such meetings, interesting titles by Flemish graphic novelists are presented, current subsidy applications are discussed and agreements are made for other international comic festivals. The Helsinki comic festival, for example, has already announced that Belgium will be highlighted in the 2012 edition and that the presence of Flemish graphic novels at the festival will be indispensible.

On Thursday 26 January, together with the Flemish Representation, Flanders Investment and Trade (FIT), the distribution company Pinceel Stripverspreiding and the Strip Turnhout festival organisers, the FLF will be organising a ‘fête flamande’ where novelists and foreign contacts can meet. The festival will conclude a period of four years of active promotion in Angoulême with a bang.

From 2013 onwards there will no longer be a Flemish sales stand for the public at large and the FLF will be moving to the 'marché des droits,' where most international publishers have their stands where they discuss foreign rights sales. The FLF is currently in discussion with Flemish and Dutch publishers regarding a more modest future scenario that will guarantee the necessary continuity and professional follow-up.

Literature

Flemish delegation visits international comic festival in Algiers

vfl — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 14:25:36 +0000

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From 5 to 8 October, the Festival International de la Bande Dessinée d'Algiers (FIBDA) welcomed a Flemish delegation: Els Aerts, the Flemish Literature Fund's (FLF) foreign rights representative for comics, Koen Van Rompaey, director of the Strip Turnhout comic festival and Willem Degraeve, assistant director of the Belgian Comic Centre. This was the fourth edition of the biggest comic festival in the Maghreb, which is devoting increasing attention to its international appeal.

FIBDA attracts some 10,000 visitors and can count on an impressive list of more than 100 guests from Algeria, Cameroon, DRC, Benin, Egypt, Taiwan, Cuba, Argentina, the United Kingdom, France, Canada, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Brazil, the United States and Belgium. The majority of the guests are graphic novelists, but others are journalists, festival organisers and other professionals. This year, the guests of honour were the graphic novelists José Muñoz from Argentina, and Benoît Peeters and François Schuiten from Belgium. Flemish comic artist Jeroen Janssen was selected for the festival's prizes for his French translation of 'Bakamé' (storyboard by Pieter van Oudheusden), which he signed at the festival for a multicultural public.

The Flemish delegation took part in a round table discussion on museums and on the theme 'Comic festivals and promotion: mission or business?' together with Francis Groux, who is one of the founders of the international comic festival in Angoulême, France, Dalila Nadjem, director of the FIBDA and Etienne Schréder, a Brussels graphic novelist who was a guest in Algiers for the fourth time and held a workshop with Algerian graphic novelists.

Visitors were extremely interested in the FLF's foreign rights policy, which is aimed at promoting Flemish literature throughout the world. That aim is achieved through projects and exhibitions, but always integrated into a strategy with a clear economic slant. After all, there is no point in getting readers interested in Flemish authors and titles if they are not then available in their own language. On of the most striking examples is the successful comic exhibition 'Ceci n'est pas la BD flamande', which premiered when Flanders was the guest country at the Angoulême Comic Festival in 2009. The exhibition was supported by a sales stand, which has since become a landmark for many festival visitors. Since 2009, almost 30 Flemish graphic novels have been published in translation with aid from the FLF.

In January 2012, an exhibition will be held at the Angoulême festival telling the history of Algerian comics. The novel 'Monstres', the result of a FIDBA workshop, the many exhibitions and the festival prizes bear witness to the abundance of new talent in Algeria. The FIBDA can also count on considerable financial and moral support from the minister of culture, who visited the festival and invited the international guests to dinner at her residence.

Literature

FLF can look back on a successful Frankfurt Book Fair

vfl — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 13:53:37 +0000

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Many foreign publishers keen to investigate new literary productions from Flanders were delighted with the Flemish Literature Fund’s presence at the Frankfurt Book Fair. This year, the FLF had a spacious, inviting presentation and meeting area at the Flemish publishers’ joint stand, a project that was made possible with the aid of financial and logistics contributions by Flanders Investment & Trade (FIT) and the Flemish Publishers Association (VUV).

The FLF was presenting non-fiction at the fair for the first time. The pilot project is intended to find out whether and how the FLF can incorporate the active promotion of non-fiction that goes further than literary essays into its foreign rights marketing. Foreign publishers were presented with an initial selection of non-fiction titles from Flanders to see which titles and themes would provoke interest. The results will be discussed with Minister Schauvliege. If the project is evaluated positively, and if an extra budget is granted, then the FLF can invest further effort into promoting culturally valuable Flemish books abroad.

In the many meetings, foreign publishers showed interest in popular life science titles, such Mark Nelissen’s “Darwin in de supermarkt’ [Darwin in the Supermarket]. Cultural biographies, such as Jan Caeyers’ 'Beethoven' and Gita Deneckere’s 'Leopold I', also attracted foreign interest. The Norwegian translation of David van Reybrouck’s 'Congo' has recently been published and the German, English, French and Swedish translations are in progress. Plans have also been made for a Danish translation. Various publishers from Spain and one from Poland also expressed interest in publishing the book.

Children’s and youth literature from Flanders attracted a great deal of attention at the Frankfurt Book Fair. ‘Wer is hier der Chef’, the German translation of ‘De baas van alles’ [The Boss of Everything] by Bart Moeyaert with illustrations by Katrien Matthys, was presented to the press. The book also received a prominent place and a positive review in the book fair supplement of the daily newspaper, Frankfurter Rundschau. This week, ‘Als gäbe es ein Himmel’, the German translation of Els Beerten’s ‘Allemaal willen we de hemel’ [We All Want Heaven] was released. The translator, Mirjam Pressler, said it was the best book she had ever read about the war. Jan De Leeuw was nominated for the Deutscher Jugendliteraturpreis for ‘Schrödinger, Dr. Linda und eine Leiche im Kühlhaus’, Rolf Erdorf’s German translation of ‘Bevroren kamers’ [Frozen Rooms]. He just missed the prize, but was very pleased with his nomination for this prestigious award.

There was a great deal of good news for the FLF from foreign publishers planning to release translations of children’s and youth books. Gerstenberg (Germany) and Cappelen Damm (Norway), for example, will be publishing ‘De duif die niet kon duiken’ [The Dove Who Could Not Dive] by Alain Verster and Edward van de Vendel and Protea Boekhuis (South Africa) is planning translations of ‘Een miljoen Vlinders’ [One Million Butterflies] by Carll Cneut and Edward van de Vendel, ‘Mare en de dingen’ [Mare and the Things that Matter] by Kaatje Vermeire and Tine Mortier, ‘De zuurtjes’ [The Sourballs] by Benjamin Leroy and Jaap Robben and ‘Galgenmeid’ [Gallows Maid] by Jean-Claude Van Rijckeghem and Pat van Beirs. Contracts have also been signed with publishers from New Zealand, Denmark and Sweden for Leo Timmers’ ‘Meneer René’ [Mister René].
New titles that incited a great deal of response were Kaatje Vermeire’s latest picture book ‘De vraag van olifant’ [Elephant’s Question], which has already been sold to Denmark and Sweden, and Bart Moeyaert’s ‘De Melkweg’ [The Milky Way], which will undoubtedly be released in German by his regular publisher Hanser Verlag but is also being considered by numerous other publishers. Publishers from Germany, Norway, India, Korea, New Zealand, Spain and Switzerland have shown interest in ‘Ik wou’ [I Wish], the portrait book by Ingrid Godon and Toon Tellegen, which will shortly be featured in an exhibition in Museum M in Louvain.

There are concrete plans for graphic novels and comics, too. Avant Verlag will be publishing a German translation of ‘Boerke’ [Little Dickie] by Pieter De Poortere and Sins Entido (Spain) a translation of ‘Slaapkoppen’ [Sleepyheads] (Randall.C). Translations are soon to be released of a book by Judith Vanistendael at Selfmadehero (UK), Norma (Spain) and Rizzoli Lizard (Italy). Contracts have already been negotiated for Brecht Evens’ new book ‘De liefhebbers’ [The Making Of] for Canada, the UK, Germany and Spain.

Foreign prose publishers are, naturally, interested in new titles by authors who have already been translated (such as Dimitri Verhulst’s ‘De intrede van Christus in Brussel’ [Entry of Christ Into Brussels], Erwin Mortier’s ‘Gestameld liedboek’ [Stammered Songbook] and ‘Post voor mevrouw Bromley’ [Mail for Mrs Bromley] by Stefan Brijs), but are also showing interest in titles by authors as yet unknown to them, such as Yves Petry with ‘De maagd Marino’ [The Virgin Marino] and Erik Vlaminck with ‘Brandlucht’ [Burning Smell]. A lot of other publications are also planned for the near future: Publishers btb will be issuing Rachida Lamrabet’s ‘Kind van God’ [Child of God] on the German market as a mass market paperback and Annelies Verbeke’s ‘Vissen redden’ [Saving Fish], recently published in German by Mare Verlag, will be released in November 2011 as a Finnish translation and in 2012 in Russian and Czech. Alexander Verlag in Berlin has reissued an existing translation of ‘Menuet’ [Minuet] with a picture of Luc Tuymans on the cover and is planning to publish more work by Louis Paul Boon. 2012 will see the publication of the Spanish translation of Erwin Mortier’s ‘Godenslaap’ [Divine Sleep] and the rights to ‘Marcel’ have been sold in Italy. In a few weeks’ time, a Danish translation of Tom Lanoye’s novel ‘Sprakeloos’ [Speechless] will be published.

Poetry and translated poetry are hard to find at a trade fair like the Frankfurt Book Fair. Nonetheless, important poetry contacts are established and maintained at the fair that generate results in the longer term. Archipelago Books (USA) is planning to publish a major anthology of poetry by Hugo Claus in an English translation by David Colmer in 2013. Hadewijch’s ‘Liederen’ [Songs] is to be published in German and French translations and there is interest from Portugal, Hungary and Russia. The exchange project ‘Poesie der Nachbarn’ will be concluded with a beautiful edition of a collection of poems that will be presented in a series of readings in Remagen (Erik Spinoy), Berlin (Dirk van Bastelaere) and Koblenz (Els Moors).

Literature

Minister Schauvliege visits Frankfurt Book Fair

vfl — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 13:40:27 +0000

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At the invitation of the Flemish Literature Fund and the Flemish Publishers Association, the Flemish minister of culture, Joke Schauvliege, was showed around the Frankfurt Book Fair, the most important professional book fair in Europe. The starting point was the guest country, Iceland. After four years of preparation, and with a budget of 3 million Euros, they gave a simple but impressive presentation of the country and its book production: 330,000 book readers are served by 40 publishing houses, which demonstrates the northern countries’ love of books.

During the tour of the German halls, extra attention was devoted to recent translations of Flemish authors issued by German publishers and supported by a translation or production grant from the FLF. Newly translated work by Els Beerten, Bart Moeyaert and Annelies Verbeke, for example, and German translations of graphic novels by Brecht Evens, Judith Vanistendael and Olivier Schrauwen reflect the growing popularity of Flemish authors in the German-speaking territory.

Flemish publishers not represented at the joint stand were also visited: Lannoo, Ballon Media, and Standaard Uitgeverij/WPG Belgium. Discussions revealed that the sale of foreign rights is a growing activity for these publishers, who employ full-time foreign rights managers to handle that growth.

The successful presentation at the recent Beijing Book Fair was discussed with colleagues from the Netherlands Foundation for Literature and tentative arrangements were made for a joint stand in 2012.

At the joint Flemish stand, publishers such as De Eenhoorn, Davidsfonds, Abimo, Stichting Kunstboek and Averbode presented their original publications and the translations of those works. Minister Schauvliege met a satisfied Pieter Aspe, who had just signed a translation contract with an American publisher.

The minister of culture expressed her admiration of Flemish publishers for their results abroad, their professional approach, the enthusiasm for books and the result-oriented cooperation between economy and culture, party thanks to the efforts of Flanders Investment and Trade, which managed the joint stand, and the FLF, which provides foreign publishers with information, carries out networking activities and subsidises translations.

She also emphasised the importance of further integration of the literary world, the reorientation of the CultuurInvest investment fund to include extra opportunities for the book sector, a formalisation of the BoekenOverleg (Book Consultation), plus talks on and a major study into the future position of the book trade in collaboration with Boek.be and Enterprise Flanders.

Literature

FLF promotes literature from Flanders in Beijing

vfl — Mon, 15 Aug 2011 18:00:00 +0000

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For the first time since its foundation ten years ago, the Flemish Literature Fund (FLF) will be present at the Beijing Book Fair, where the Netherlands is the guest country this year. The FLF has evolved into a household name at book fairs in Frankfurt, London, Angoulême and Bologna. It is now hoping to get a foothold in the Far East for starting up literary exchange projects.

At the invitation of the Dutch Foundation for Literature three staff members from the FLF’s foreign rights department will be travelling to China. They will be promoting literature from Flanders from a booth at the 16-stand Dutch pavilion and giving Asian publishers the opportunity to familiarise themselves with literary books from Flanders.

The primary objective of this trip is to explore the Chinese publishing world and provide publishers with expert information on literature from Flanders and the role the FLF can play in accomplishing translation projects.

Literature

Jan de Leeuw nominated for the Jugendliteraturpreis

vfl — Sat, 13 Aug 2011 13:31:26 +0000

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Jan de Leeuw’s Bevroren kamers (Frozen Rooms) has been nominated for the Deutscher Jugendliteraturpreis 2011. Rolf Erdorf translated the title as Schrödinger, Dr. Linda und eine Leiche im Kühlhaus. De Leeuw won praise from the jury for his style, which was described as ‘light hearted and, at the same time, tragicomic’. Also, ‘The reader experiences the chaotic feelings of mourning, caring, amorousness and despair from inside as well as from a distance: a complete panoramic view’.

Literature

Five stars for Tom Lanoye’s ‘Blood & Roses’ in Avignon

vfl — Sat, 13 Aug 2011 13:28:23 +0000

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On 22 July, Tom Lanoye’s latest theatre text, ‘Bloed & rozen. Het lied van Jeanne en Gilles’ (Blood & Roses. The Song of Jeanne and Gilles), was staged in the famous Cour d’Honneur at the Avignon theatre festival. The British newspaper The Financial Times gives the performance five stars: ‘You could almost hear the sighs of satisfaction and relief rippling round Avignon’s medieval Palace of the Popes as this production unfolded: historical substance with overt contemporary echoes, interesting structure, a sterling cast, innovative scenography and rich choral polyphony’. A Belgian theatre critic wrote, ‘Lanoye’s text sparkles and crackles like Joan of Arc’s stake’.

This Toneelhuis production is the fruit of the latest collaboration between Tom Lanoye and director Guy Cassiers. With the support of the FLF, Actes Sud published the French translation, accompanied by ‘Mama Medea’, a free and contemporary adaptation of the myth of Medea. Alain van Crugten translated both plays.

Literature

Paris gets its first Flemish comic wall

vfl — Sat, 13 Aug 2011 13:25:13 +0000

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On 11 July 2011, the Flemish Representation's courtyard at 6, rue Euler, Paris, was adorned with a comic wall entitled La Flandre met Paris en bulles (Flanders fills Paris with bubbles). Nic Vandermarliere, representative of the Flemish government in France, and Luc Fabry, economic and commercial attaché to the Flemish Region, are enthusiastic about the project and demonstrate a durable dedication to supporting comic strips in France in the future.

The FLF commissioned graphic novelist Pieter de Poortere to create the design. Characters brought to life by De Poortere himself, Brecht Evens, Olivier Schrauwen, Judith Vanistendael, Randall.C and Jeroen Janssen that have been translated into French have left the pages of their books to become part of a Parisian décor.

Literature

Four-Day Prague Marathon for Dimitri Verhulst

vfl — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 10:56:45 +0000

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May is an important book month in Prague.Not only is it the month in which the book fair is held; for a number of years already, on the eve of the fair, there has been the annual Literature Night, which is steadily gaining popularity.

The Czech translation of Dimitri Verhulst’s ‘Godverdomse dagen op een godverdomse bol’ [Goddam Days on a Goddam Globe], published by Mlada Fronta and translated by Veronika Havlikova, was ready just in time and has been on the shelves of booksellers since the beginning of the Book Fair.Verhulst travelled to Prague to present the book at various locations. This four-day Prague marathon was the result of collaboration between the Flemish Literature Fund, the Flemish Representation in the Czech Republic and the publisher, Mlada Fronta.

On the initiative of the Flemish Representation in the Czech Republic, the Literature Night programme included the Czech translation of ‘Godverdomse dagen op een godverdomse bol’. During the Night, celebrities and less well-known faces read work from Czech and foreign authors’ work in 15-minutes sessions at various locations in Prague.In the presence of Dimitri Verhulst, in Café Dekada a famous actor read the first chapter of ‘Godverdomse dagen op een godverdomse bol’. The reading was extremely well received by the audience.

On Thursday 12 May, Verhulst gave a reading at the University of Brno for lecturers and students in Dutch language and talked to them afterwards.On Friday 13 May, Mlada Fronta had arranged a programme at the book fair.At the fair, Verhulst also gave a reading, was interviewed by various Czech papers and signed books together with David Grossman.

Verhulst’s Czech publisher is exceptionally enthusiastic about the book and is planning to publish a second title in the near future.

Literature

Literature from Flanders guest of magazine Host

vfl — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 10:53:41 +0000

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The samizdat magazine Host was set up by Dušan Skála in Brno in 1985. In 1990, he was to establish the publishing house of the same name, Host, which quickly grew into a prestigious, renowned publisher’s specialising in contemporary Czech and foreign fiction, poetry and literary theory.

One of the members of the current editorial team, Marek Sečkař, accepted the FLF’s invitation to participate in the Publisher’s Tour 2010. A number of foreign publishers spent a week in Flanders, getting acquainted with Flemish literature during several presentations and workshops. Sečkař decided to dedicate a section of the magazine to contemporary Flemish literature. The issue concerned was recently published.

It included an essay by Tom Van Imschoot on recent developments in contemporary prose in Flanders, one by Magda de Bruin Hüblová on the connection between Dutch and Flemish, some translated extracts of prose by Erik Vlaeminck, Elvis Peeters and Peter Terrin, an essayistic text by Joseph Pearce on the Jews in Antwerp, an interview with Peter Holvoet-Hanssen about Antwerp’s (urban) poets and a small selection of translated poems by Hugo Claus, Leonard Nolens, Stefan Hertmans, Miriam Van hee, Charles Ducal, Dirk van Bastelaere, Peter Verhelst, Eva Cox and Els Moors.

Literature

Ephameron on the wall on Coney Island

vfl — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 10:51:38 +0000

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The versatility of graphic designer, illustrator and artist Ephameron was already demonstrated last year, when her graphic novel ‘Weg’was published. The book, created in collaboration with Pieter van Oudheusden, was presented at the University of Antwerp in an ideal setting: in front of a wall painting by Ephameron, which will stay in place for a year.

Equally ephemeral is her latest creation: a 20-meter-long wall painting on Coney Island, New York. The organisers of No Longer Empty invited OverUnder, Veng and Ephameron to create images on the enclosure surrounding a large building site. Ephemaron was commissioned to realise a 20-metre-long mural painting on the theme of water. With her husband’s assistance, she completed the job in 10 hours.

Literature

Brecht Evens nominated for prestigious Eisner Award

vfl — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 10:49:34 +0000

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Flemish graphic novelist Brecht Evens has been nominated for an Eisner award, the highest distinction in the world of cartoons and graphic novels. With ‘The Wrong Place’, the English translation of ‘Ergens waar je niet wil zijn’, Evens is up for the category of ‘best painter/multimedia artist (interior art)’. The winners will be announced in July. Last year, Willy Linthout was also nominated in two categories for 'Years of the Elephant'.

Evens’ Flemish publisher Oogachtend is about to release the third impression of ‘Ergens waar je niet wil zijn’. That is unusual for a graphic novel and proves that quality and high sales figures are not mutually exclusive. Connoisseurs will discover two extra pages in this edition, which is as beautifully designed as the previous two. The Flemish Literature Fund (FLF) has been supporting Brecht Evens since the beginning of his career with working grants for the author and production support for Oogachtend.

Evens first visited the International Comic Festival in Angoulême in 2007, together with the FLF. Two years later, he was one of the twenty graphic novelists participating in the highly successful exhibition ‘Ceci n’est pas la BD flamande’, when Flanders was the guest country in Angoulême. Since then, Even’s career has snowballed, with translations into French (Actes Sud, translated by Vaidehi Nota and Boris Boublil), German (Reprodukt, translated by Andrea Kluitmann) and English (Drawn and Quarterly, translated by Rhian Heppleston, Michele Hutchison en Laura Watkinson), supported by the FLF. Following the Canadian edition, Jonathan Cape, the comic imprint of the renowned publishers Random House, will be releasing a British edition. Contracts have been concluded for Spanish and Korean translations and negotiations are being held with various publishers for an Italian version. Early this year, ‘Ergens waar je niet wil zijn’ again attracted a lot of attention at the Angoulême International Comic Festival, where it won the Prix de l’Audace, an award for an experimental, daring graphic novel. Evens had already earlier won the Willy Vandersteen Prize in Belgium.

The sequel to ‘Ergens waar je niet wil zijn’ will be published this autumn.Expectations are high, but publisher Johan Stuyck is convinced they will be more than fulfilled.

Literature

‘Het verdriet van België’ [The Sorrow of Belgium] is now also available in Hungarian

vfl — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 10:46:21 +0000

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Budapest-based publishers L’Harmattan recently published the Hungarian translation of ‘Het verdriet van België’, Hugo Claus’ magnum opus about Louis Seynaeve. Translator Szabolcs Wekerle spent two years working on 'Belgium Bánata’, as the book is entitled in Hungarian.

Szabolcs Wekerle is a renowned translator from Dutch. He had already translated another magnum opus, Harry Mulisch’s ‘De ontdekking van de hemel’[The Discovery of Heaven], as well as J. Bernlef’s ‘Hersenschimmen’ [Out of Mind], four novels by Arnon Grunberg, Willem Elsschot’s ‘Kaas’[Cheese] and ‘Het Dwaallicht’ [Will o’ the Wisp] and ‘De man die werk vond’[The Man Who Found Work] by Herman Brusselmans. This translation, which was made possible by a translation grant from the Flemish Literature Fund, is the sixteenth in a row for Claus’ book. The novel has already been published in English, French, German, Spanish, Chinese, Italian, Portuguese, Finnish, Swedish, Norwegian, Danish, Polish, Greek, Romanian and Serbo-Croatian.

The Hungarian translation was officially presented on 9 June during the Futurspektiv Festival 2011, a cultural event organised in Budapest by the Flemish Representation in Hungary.

Literature

Dimitri Verhulst guest at the Prague ‘Night of Literature’

vfl — Wed, 06 Apr 2011 10:23:45 +0000

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May 2011 will see the publication of the Czech translation of Dimitri Verhulst’s novel ‘Godverdomse dagen op een godverdomse bol’ [Goddamn Days on a Goddamn Globe] by the Prague publishing house Mlada Fronta. To mark the occasion, Dimitri Verhulst will be a guest at the Prague happening ‘Night of Literature’ on 11 May. The visit is being funded by the Flemish Delegation in the Czech Republic and the Flemish Literature Fund.

During the evening, excerpts from recently translated work by living authors will be read out at twenty different venues in Prague's historic city centre. This highly popular event is traditionally held on the eve of the book fair. Excerpts from ‘Godverdomse dagen op een godverdomse bol’ will be read by an actor in the presence of Dimitri Verhulst. Verhulst will also be present at the book fair for signings.

Literature

Warsaw reads literature in peculiar places

vfl — Wed, 06 Apr 2011 10:20:08 +0000

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On April 16th, Warsaw will be filled with literature. All day long, actors and actresses connected to Theatre Ochoty will be reading fragments of European literature that was recently translated into Polish. Among those: ‘In the Shadow of the Ark’, a novel by Anne Provoost, translated by Ryszard Turczyn and published in Poland by Ezop.

‘Reading somewhere else’, a project of the European Union National Institutes for Culture (EUNIC Cluster Warsaw), the Flemish Representation in Poland and Theatre Ochoty, is set up to promote and increase the interest in reading modern literature among Polish people of all ages.

Three literary paths guide the visitor along different spots in the Ochota quarter. The unique locations make this festival extra charming. You can go and attend reading performances in a hair dressing salon, a laundrette, a hotel apartment, a private kitchen, a photo studio, on a roof, and at the train station.

Literature

Brecht Evens tours the world with ‘The Wrong Place’

vfl — Wed, 06 Apr 2011 10:16:39 +0000

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In April, Brecht Evens will be travelling to New York and in May to Toronto to promote the English translations of ‘Ergens waar je niet wil zijn’ (‘The Wrong Place, Drawn & Quarterly) and ‘Nachtdieren’ (‘Night Animals’, Top Shelf) Things are moving quickly for the young Flemish graphic novelist, especially since he won the ‘Prix de l’Audace’ in January at the International Comic Festival in Angoulême.

At the two-day MoCCA Fest, a festival, organised by a prestigious New York comic museum on 9 and 10 April, thousands of visitors are expected, not only to see Evens but also for the panel discussions and signing sessions with Charles Burns and Pascal Girard, for example.

On 7 and 8 May, Brecht Evens will be travelling to the Toronto Comic Arts Festival (TCAF), Canada’s biggest comic festival, with more than 15,000 visitors and more than 250 international authors. As a featured guest, Evens will also be taking part in the panel discussions, interviews, signings and book presentations.

The English-language market is scarcely open to translations and the tremendous reception Evens’ ‘The Wrong Place’ received is even rarer. The 'Boston Globe', for example, wrote, “My favorite is Brecht Evens’s “The Wrong Place,” an exhilaratingly sensual book about jealousy and desire among a group of hip, young urban adults and the leader of the pack, Robbie, the very elusive life of the party. … This fizzy little novel is all about buzz, gossip, sex, and having fun. It’s so busy and exuberant you wish you could join the party." The English translation is published by the Canadian Drawn and Quarterly and will also shortly be released by Jonathan Cape, the impressive imprint of Britain’s Random House.

Evens is causing an international stir with translations of ‘Ergens waar je niet wil zijn’ into French (Actes Sud), German (Reprodukt), Spanish (Sins Entido) and Korean (Open Books). Evens’ publishers are possibly even more enthusiastic about the forthcoming ‘The Making of’.

Literature

Ingrid Vander Veken to promote two translations in South Africa

vfl — Thu, 10 Feb 2011 13:20:15 +0000

She will attend the Woordfees festival in Stellenbosch

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In March, Ingrid Vander Veken will be going to South Africa at the invitation of her Afrikaans publisher, Lapa, with the support of the Flemish Literature Fund (FLF). She will be doing readings and signings in various cities following the recent release of the Afrikaans translation of her novel 'Papavers' (Poppies), and her youth novel, 'Sam'.

From 4 to 13 March, she will be a guest at the Woordfees festival in Stellenbosch. She will also be doing readings at a number of bookshops. A further programme is planned for Johannesburg/Potchefstroom.

'Papavers' is about the relationship between a mother and her stepson, who suffers from schizophrenia. The book was translated by the South-African author and translator Christine Barkhuizen le Roux.

'Sam' is being translated by the translator and poetess Antjie Krog, and tells the true story of a girl and her elephant. It is about friendship between people and animals and all things strange.

More information:

Date: 4-13 March

Location: Stellenbosch, Zuid-Afrika

Website: www.woordfees.co.za

Literature

Brecht Evens guest at Bilbolbul International Comic Festival

vfl — Thu, 10 Feb 2011 12:53:07 +0000

Exhibition 'Night Elegy' shows original drawings

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Flemish graphic novelist Brecht Evens (°1986) has been invited to the Bilbolbul International Comic Festival in Italy. With support from the Flemish Literature Fund (FLF), Evens is paying an author's visit to the fifth edition of this festival in Bologna. From 2 to 6 March, there will be various exhibitions and readings at Bilbolbul, with many authors present.

In 2009, Brecht Evens made his international breakthrough with 'Ergens waar je niet wil zijn' (The wrong place). In the meantime, this graphic novel has been translated into French (Actes Sud), English (Drawn and Quarterly) and German (Reprodukt). Contracts have also been concluded for Spanish and Korean translations and negotiations are being held with various publishers for an Italian version.

'Ergens waar je niet wil zijn' already attracted a lot of attention at the Angoulême International Comic Festival, where it won the Prix de l'Audace, the award for experimental graphic novels with guts.

In Bologna, Brecht Evens will have his own exhibition, 'Night elegy', where original drawings from 'Ergens waar je niet wil zijn' will be on show. The comic festival itself runs until 6 March, but Evens' exhibition can be visited till 31 March.

More information:

Date: Comic Festival 2-6 March, Exhibition 'Night Elegy': 4-31 March

Location: Bologna, Italy

Website: www.bilbolbul.net

Literature

FLF promotes Flemish children's books in Bologna

vfl — Wed, 09 Feb 2011 12:51:36 +0000

Illustrator Tom Schamp guides young Stefanie De Graef through the book fair

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For the fifth time running, the Flemish Literature Fund (FLF) will be flying the banner at the Bologna Children's Book Fair (28-31 March). The children's and youth literature rights manager has a diary packed with meetings with foreign publishers at the joint Flemish stand.

Illustrators Stefanie De Graef and Tom Schamp, a young talent and an old hand, will be travelling with the FLF to Bologna. They are following in the footsteps of Carll Cneut and Kaatje Vermeire, who were the first two to accompany the FLF last year, with great success. In the meantime, the Chinese (Taiwan), French and Norwegian rights for Vermeire's latest book, 'Mare and the Things that Matter' (Mare en de dingen, de Eenhoorn, with Tine Mortier) have been sold and negotiations are in progress for yet more languages.

The Dutch-speaking market is too small for an illustrator to make a decent living, so the FLF is eager to encourage young talents to set their sights further abroad. In Bologna, they can find their own place in the international market, learn to present and sell themselves and become more aware of the business side of the job. In time, foreign connections may even enable them to make a living from their work.

The next issue of the review magazine De Leeswelp features an extensive article on the FLF's foreign policy for children's and youth literature. This is part of a series on Bologna that also shows a glimpse of Stefanie De Graef's portfolio and a fascinating review of her work by Tom Schamp. The April issue, published after the children's book fair, will include a report from the illustrators.

Each year, the Bologna book fair stages an exhibition of work by illustrators from all over the world. This year, Flemish illustrator Carll Cneut is being accorded the great honour of a seat on the professional jury. Two Belgians have been selected: French-speaking Anne Crahay and the Fleming Ingrid Godon. Their work will be travelling the world after Bologna, as the exhibition calls in at various Japanese venues.

More information:

Date:

28-31 March

Location:

Piazza Costituzione 6

40128 Bologna

Italy

Website:

www.bookfair.bolognafiere.it

Literature