Israeli poet and writer Tal Nitzán recently visited Brazil, where she launched the Portuguese translation of her anthology and participated in a major literature festival in November.
"I have a deep, long-standing connection with Brazilian culture,” Nitzan said. “Poetry can create bridges, spiritual yet solid, everywhere."
“Atlantis” is the second book by Nitzan translated in Brazil, where her work is very popular.
For this reason, the organizers of the international art, literature and poetry festival Artes Vertentes in the city of Tiradentes decided to invite her as a special guest to the event.
According to the organizers, the Israeli artist is one of the most known foreign poets in Brazil also because of the deep connection between her work and that of Brazilian poets. The festival is attended by many international authors and artists.
"Although ‘Atlântida’ is the fourteenth publication of my poetry translated from Hebrew, it has a special meaning for me, due to a deep, long-standing connection I have with Brazilian culture and the Portuguese language", Nitzán said. "Writing in Hebrew means addressing a relatively small readership, and in this respect, the potential of the Portuguese language is truly dizzying."
The author presented the book at the festival as well as in many other locations around the country including Belo Horizonte, São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, with the support of the Embassy of Israel in Brazil.
"Since this is my second book published in Brazil, it was a pleasant surprise to meet readers already familiar with my poetry, who were expecting this book,” Nitzán remarked. “There is, of course, a great gap between the languages, the cultural codes and the Israeli and Brazilian existence, but at the same time this visit demonstrated how the essential human experience is common to us all."
According to Liora Zonshine, the culture attache at the Embassy, Nitzán’s visit resulted in the exposure of Israeli culture in Brazil and the strengthening of ties with cultural figures, ahead of Israel's expected participation as a guest country in the Literature Biennale in Rio de Janeiro this year.
Nitzán’s first book of prose is also now in the process of being translated into Portuguese.