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In this conversation / interview conducted on 9th May 2024, Paul Casey, Director of Ó Bhéal, and Cornelia Gräbner reflect on the organizational context within which the event "Poems in Port Cities" was embedded, and on the values and standards of the curation. The organizational and curatorial process builds on a round table conversation organized by Cornelia Gräbner at the Winter Warmer 2021, on "poetry scenes," which featured Paul Casey as well as poetry organizers Dave Ward (Liverpool) and Yolanda Castaño (A Coruña). This conversation articulated a shared understanding of "poetry scenes" as thoughtfully and intentionally created and nurtured cultural spaces, within which poets and poems can flourish and experiment, and within which "poetry" can be critically appreciated with attentiveness and patience, in dialogue with others and in a cooperative spirit. "Poems in Port Cities" was organized and curated on the basis of this shared understanding, and it was this understanding that enabled the experimental and speculative nature of the event.
In this conversation, Paul situates the event within the context of Ó Bhéal's activities and ethos. Both conversation partners refer back to previous conversations and co-organized activities that fed into the event. The conversation also draws on and develops several mutual interests: the commitment of fostering a culture of listening and of attentiveness through the engagement with poetry; the identification and nurture of social and organizational techniques by which poetry environments are created and sustained; an ongoing exploration of, and reflection on, the poetics that emerge from and within the very specific environment of port cities and their surrounding shorelines; and an appreciation of the importance of mutual trust for the hosting and curation of experimental, genre-breaking events.
» Paul Casey's poems have recently appeared in Local Wonders (Dedalus) and in The Irish Times. His second collection Virtual Tides was published by Salmon in 2016. It followed home more or less (Salmon, 2012), and a chapbook, it's not all bad (Heaventree, 2009). His work has been published widely in international journals and anthologies, and has been translated into Romanian, Italian, Chinese and Galician. He edited A Journey called Home (Cork City Libraries, 2018), an anthology of poems and stories from immigrant writers in 20 languages, including translations. He teaches creative writing, curates the Unfinished Book of Poetry for teenage writers and he has promoted poetry in his role as director of Ó Bhéal since 2007.
» Cornelia Gräbner is a Senior Lecturer in Hispanic Studies and Comparative Literature at Lancaster University. She received a PhD from the University of Amsterdam for a dissertation on the performance of poetry and political commitment. She has published on the poetry performance and resistance literature in Europe and the Americas, including the edited collection Performing Poetry: Body, Place and Rhythm in the Poetry Performance (with Arturo Casas) and co-edited special issues on "The Poetics of Resistance," "Poetry in Public Spaces," and most recently, a special issue of Critical Comparative Studies on "Against the Grain: Dissent, Opposition and La parola contraria in Literature, Politics and the Arts" (with Joost de Bloois and Jim Hicks).
In this conversation, Paul situates the event within the context of Ó Bhéal's activities and ethos. Both conversation partners refer back to previous conversations and co-organized activities that fed into the event. The conversation also draws on and develops several mutual interests: the commitment of fostering a culture of listening and of attentiveness through the engagement with poetry; the identification and nurture of social and organizational techniques by which poetry environments are created and sustained; an ongoing exploration of, and reflection on, the poetics that emerge from and within the very specific environment of port cities and their surrounding shorelines; and an appreciation of the importance of mutual trust for the hosting and curation of experimental, genre-breaking events.
» Paul Casey's poems have recently appeared in Local Wonders (Dedalus) and in The Irish Times. His second collection Virtual Tides was published by Salmon in 2016. It followed home more or less (Salmon, 2012), and a chapbook, it's not all bad (Heaventree, 2009). His work has been published widely in international journals and anthologies, and has been translated into Romanian, Italian, Chinese and Galician. He edited A Journey called Home (Cork City Libraries, 2018), an anthology of poems and stories from immigrant writers in 20 languages, including translations. He teaches creative writing, curates the Unfinished Book of Poetry for teenage writers and he has promoted poetry in his role as director of Ó Bhéal since 2007.
» Cornelia Gräbner is a Senior Lecturer in Hispanic Studies and Comparative Literature at Lancaster University. She received a PhD from the University of Amsterdam for a dissertation on the performance of poetry and political commitment. She has published on the poetry performance and resistance literature in Europe and the Americas, including the edited collection Performing Poetry: Body, Place and Rhythm in the Poetry Performance (with Arturo Casas) and co-edited special issues on "The Poetics of Resistance," "Poetry in Public Spaces," and most recently, a special issue of Critical Comparative Studies on "Against the Grain: Dissent, Opposition and La parola contraria in Literature, Politics and the Arts" (with Joost de Bloois and Jim Hicks).
