On 11-12 October 2024, the Armenian Institute invites you to a sparkling constellation of wordsmiths, multidisciplinary artists, documentary makers and theatre groups. Together, let’s celebrate the timeless wisdom of an ancient Armenian tradition which honours the foundational role of letters, arts and intercultural dialogue.
On Friday evening (6:30pm), at the Armenian House and online, join us for a scintillating evening of readings and discussions on the bridging role of literature across historical, political and cultural spheres.
We will continue on Saturday afternoon (2pm) at the Armenian House and online, with talks and screenings showcasing the engagement of contemporary arts and culture with Armenian cultural heritage. Register here for the second day of our festival.
Contributors:
Friday: Maureen Freely is a writer, translator and Professor of English and Comparative Literary Studies and a member of English PEN. She is the author of six novels (Mother’s Helper, The Life of the Party, The Stork Club, Under the Vulcania, The Other Rebecca, and - most recently - Enlightenment) as well as three works of non-fiction (Pandora's Clock, What About Us? An Open Letter to the Mothers Feminism Forgot, and The Parent Trap). The translator of five books by the Turkish Nobel laureate Orhan Pamuk, she is active in various campaigns to champion free expression. Alongside her essays on feminism, social policy, Turkish politics and culture on national and international press, Freely works with campaigns aiming to promote world literature in English translation. Maia Elsner is an acclaimed Mexican-Polish-Jewish-British writer and interdisciplinary poet and translator who writes on her grandfather’s art and experiences post-WWII; Xaviera Ringeling is an environmental researcher, Spanish teacher, and New Voices prize-winning bilingual Chilean poet who supports NGOs with her poetry performances; and Shahé Mankerian is a poet, poetry coach, playwright and headteacher at St. Gregory Hovsepian School, whose debut collection, History of Forgetfulness, has been a finalist at prestigious poetry competitions.
This event was organised by Tamara Wilson, in collaboration with Exiled Writers Ink.
This event is part of Heritage of Displacement: Oral Histories from the UK Armenian Communities (2023–2026), funded by a National Lottery Heritage Fund grant, thanks to National Lottery players.
About Tamara Wilson
Tamara Wilson is an award-winning poet, activist and research fellow at the University of Roehampton, London. Alongside her multidisciplinary academic research on the postcolonial legacy of the Ottoman Empire, she aims to shine a light on the various demands, denials and struggles of survival and its politicized representations through her creative engagements.Her forthcoming genre-defying counter memory text which won the Award of Excellence in Literature in international Orthodox Arts Festival (2021) by unanimous vote, investigates the aftermath of the Armenian Genocide and Greek ethnic cleansing from the lens of social death. Currently, she is working on several interdisciplinary projects in addition to her ethnodrama play.
She is also a member of the events & editorial committee of Exiled Writers Ink, a literary organisation dedicated to human rights, social justice and cross-cultural dialogue through literature and literary activism.
