What's on in Wellington and Beyond

February has been a busy month for many Temporary Literaturhaus participants. Here in Wellington the Fringe Festival is in full swing. If, like me, you didn’t catch Lorenzo Bühne at his first Fringe gig, you can head down to Happy on 29^th Feb where he will be performing tracks from his brand-new album Wild Iron: New Zealand Poetry Adapted to Song. I had an excellent reason for not seeing the first show – I was listening to “edgy words” with four poets including Aleksandra Lane, whose first book in English (yes, she has two in Serbian already!) Birds of Clay had been launched a few days earlier. I can highly recommend Aleks’s poetry – and also her family’s Serbian home cooking and the gypsy music performed by her friends. This week Tina Makereti has also been having some multilingual adventures – read an interview here about the German translation of her work. Elizabeth Knox, who wrote a new Grim/m fairytale for our Lithaus launch, will be among the NZ writers travelling to Leipzig for the book fair next month, but in the next couple of weeks she’ll be appearing at literary festivals in Beijing and Shanghai. Hinemoana Baker is also on the road, with a poetry reading in New York next week. Right now I am eying the first (and currently only) bound proof of next month’s “Sport” with contributions from NZ and German writers (and their translators) including various Temporary Literaturhaus participants. The volume will be launched at Writers and Readers Week, which is drawing ever closer. I’m looking forward to the session with Jenny Erpenbeck (read an extract from Visitation here), discussions about the art of translation and a poetry masterclass with Bill Manhire – the names of the three chosen poets have been announced…

PS And the NZ International Arts Festival kicks off tonight!

Looking forward...

A big thank-you to all those who participated in the launch of the Temporary Literaturhaus. It was a great week, but don’t despair if you missed it – the Temporary Literaturhaus will be returning towards the end of March and acclaimed German writer Inka Parei will be putting in an appearance. In the meantime, Wellingtonians can look forward to Writers and Readers Week.

NEWSLETTER for the Temporary Literaturhaus

If you would like to receive updates about Temporary Literaturhaus events and other literary happenings in Wellington please write to us at literaturhausnz@gmail.com and ask to be added to our email list. The launch week starts on 7th February!

Writers and Readers Week Programme Now Out

Everyone at the Temporary Literaturhaus was excited to see the full programme of Writers and Readers Week, released this week. There is plenty to look forward to from a translation perspective, including sessions with German writer Jenny Erpenbeck and a panel on “The Art of Translation”. More on that later – in the meantime, the Temporary Literaturhaus launches in just over a week... 

Launch Week Programme for the Temporary Literaturhaus

This year New Zealand will be in the international literary spotlight as guest of honour at the world’s largest book fair in Frankfurt. From February onwards you can explore New Zealand’s literary connections with the rest of the world at Wellington’s Temporary Literaturhaus, a mobile literary festival. Join us at the launch week for readings, discussions, music and film.

Tues 7^th February 2012:

Landscapes of Memory: Kate de Goldi and Lloyd Jones on writing and place
6pm City Gallery, Civic Square, Wellington

Weds 8^th February 2012:

Anton Can do Magic, performed in German and English by Fiona McNamara and Ailsa Krefft
A fantastic quirky picture book by Ole Konnecke (published by award-winning Wellington publisher Gecko Press). Suitable for preschoolers (2-4 yrs) accompanied by an adult.

10.30-11.00am Wellington Central Library

Reading Stage 1
Short readings from current work by upcoming and established writers and translators from the Institute of Modern Letters, Massey University, the New Zealand Centre for Literary Translation and Whitireia.
12.00 – 12.55, Wellington Central Library

Grim/m Tales
Hinemoana Baker, Paul Diamond, Fiona Kidman, Elizabeth Knox, Marco Sonzogni and Apirana Taylor give their unique take on Grimm-inspired themes.

6.15pm, Wellington Central Library: Join the writers for pre-show coffee from 5.30pm in Clarks.

Thurs 9^th February 2012:

Reading Stage 2 Short readings from current work by upcoming and established writers and translators from the Institute of Modern Letters, Massey University, the New Zealand Centre for Literary Translation and Whitireia.
12.00 – 12.55, Wellington Central Library

The Poetry Cabaret

Featuring musician Lorenzo Bühne and poets Bill Manhire and Chris Price with music, performances and readings of NZ poetry and German poetry in translation.
6pm Cafe Meow (9 Edward St), Wellington

Fri 10^th February 2012:

Storytelling with Holly Gooch

Storyteller Holly Gooch performs on a fairy tale-inspired theme. Suitable for preschoolers (2 – 4 yrs) accompanied by an adult.

10.30am (until 11.30am), Wellington Central Library

Stories in Silhouette
Fairy tales brought to life by Lotte Reiniger, a pioneer of silhouette animation.
7.00pm, NZ Film Archive, Taranaki St, Wellington

Sat 11^th February 2012:

Storytelling with Apirana Taylor.
Apirana Taylor tells stories, strums his guitar and adds atmosphere with his traditional Maori instruments.

Suitable for primary-age children (5 – 9 yrs).
2.00-3.00pm, Wellington Central Library

Free entry to kids’ events and lunchtime sessions. Evening events by Koha. For more information contact literaturhausnz@gmail.com

With the support of Creative New Zealand 

Also supported by the Goethe-Institut, NZ Book Council, New Zealand Centre for Literary Translation, and Wellington City Council

 

Welcome to the Temporary Literaturhaus

In October 2012 New Zealand will be the Guest of Honour at the world’s biggest literary event, the Frankfurt Book Fair. To celebrate this, translator Sally-Ann Spencer has brought together a group of literary organisations to bring a taste of Europe to Wellington by creating New Zealand’s first, albeit temporary, Literaturhaus.

The Literaturhaus concept was first developed in Berlin in the late 1980s and has since been adopted in numerous cities in Germany and beyond. Literaturhäuser are at the heart of literary life in Germany, providing a venue for innovative literary events and education and a meeting place for all those interested in books. Their central mission is to communicate and promote interest in literature in all its forms among diverse readerships. The concept has since been introduced in Scandinavia with great success.

The Temporary Literaturhaus in Wellington will provide a mobile platform for literary events that bring together different communities of readers and writers. The launch events are organized in collaboration with the New Zealand Book Council, the New Zealand Centre for Literary Translation and Wellington City Libraries, the Temporary Literaturhaus will reappear on a monthly basis at different venues in Wellington and connect with other literary institutions and initiatives in the city (supported by a grant from CNZ).

In the tradition of the German Literaturhäuser, the Temporary Literaturhaus will focus on innovative programming, moving away from conventional readings to focus on “live” literature and providing a welcoming and stimulating atmosphere for people to engage in the wider conversation about literature, translation and books.

Sponsored by: Creative New Zealand
Supported by:  Goethe Institut, New Zealand Centre for Literary Translation, Meow Bar & Cafe, Wellington City Libraries, New Zealand Book Council

For more information, email literaturhausnz@gmail.com. The launch week runs from 7 - 11 February.