EuropeanPoetryInMotion

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Għaqda Poeti Maltin – Maltese Poets Association

European Poetry in Motion®

Five Maltese Poets in Washington

Wotz up Union Print - 20 ta' Mejju 2007 L-UE Tippromwovi l-poezija Maltija fl-Istati Uniti

European Poetry in Motion® project - Marathon Reading

Saturday, May 5, 2007, the Goethe-Institut Washington hosted a marathon poetry reading of all 136 poems chosen by the 27 member states of the European Union to be part of the European Poetry in Motion® project. Each poem was read in its original language and the English translation by representatives from the embassies and by readers they selected. http://www.goethe.de/ins/us/was/kue/en2319504.htm

EUROPEAN POETRY IN MOTION-PUBLIC ARTS PROJECT

The last issue of Versi (2008/1) is now in our hands. Its front page is dedicated to an ambitious project that the Maltese Poets Association has taken part in, in conjunction with the other member states of the European Union to commemorate the 50^th year of its existence. For this said project baptised EUROPEAN POETRY IN MOTION, five poets were chosen from each member country. Our representatives were Alfred Massa, Charles Magro, Emmanuel Attard Cassar, Therese Pace and Raymond Grech. Each poet had to submit a short poem or an extract from a longer poem, not more than fourteen lines, in the Maltese language together with its translation into English. A photo of the poet accompanied each contribution. An audio version of the poems was later added to the site.

This first ever such project was given great prominence in the United States as its main aim was to transport European literature and culture to America. According to a press release dated 23^rd March 2007, these poems were to be exhibited for enjoyment at Metro rail stations and on the Washington metro buses in the National capital region for the whole month of May, as well as on an internet site purposely designed for the duration of the project. These poems were then read by representatives of the member countries during a special evening held in Washington. An audio version of the poetry reading was also made available on the website.

Besides giving prominence to the project organizers and to the European Union in general, this initiative served the purpose of bringing together into the limelight the various languages, already familiar or otherwise in which the poems were written. This means that our language sat on an equal footing with the other major ones. As Maltese we were proud to have participated in such an event. The ripple effect of such an initiative is that Europe and the United States for that matter, got to know of the existence of The Maltese Poets Association and its website which saw more visitors accessing it to browse and read Maltese literature and poems written by local poets thus fostering a wider appreciation of European culture and increasing reading habits. We believe there is no end of benefit and opportunity through this.

All this was made possible through the help of the European Commission, the German Presidency of the European Union which acted as overall editor, the Washington Metropolitan Transit Authority, of the DC commission on the Arts and Humanities, of Alexandria, of Planet Arlington, of the Prince George County Arts Councils and of the Poetry Society of America.

While auguring that this initiative would have many more successions for our own enrichment, one may find extensive information on the official website for this project www.europeanpoetryinmotion.eu which will be available until May 2008.

Għaqda Poeti Maltin – Maltese Poets Association

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