Wandering with Robert Walser

The new year is shaping up quite nicely for all us English-speaking Walserites, particularly those in my own hometown of Chicago. Here’s a hint of what’s to come:

December 3 (through April 2012): In the Spirit of Robert Walser, Donald Young Gallery, Chicago. “The Donald Young Gallery is pleased to present a series of exhibitions inspired by the Swiss writer Robert Walser. On December 3rd, the gallery will open the first part of the exhibition with the archival material being shown together with 3 clay sculptures by Peter Fischli and David Weiss. This will be followed by Moyra Davey in January, Thomas Schütte in February, Rosemarie Trockel in March and Tacita Dean and Mark Wallinger in April.”

January 24: Berlin Stories, translated by Susan Bernofsky, New York Review Books Classics. “Berlin Stories collects [Walser's] alternately celebratory, droll, and satirical observations on every aspect of the bustling German capital, from its theaters, cabarets, painters’ galleries, and literary salons, to the metropolitan street, markets, the Tiergarten, rapid-service restaurants, and the electric tram. Originally appearing in literary magazines as well as the feuilleton sections of newspapers, the early stories are characterized by a joyous urgency and the generosity of an unconventional guide.”

February 14 (now May 15): Oppressive Light, Selected Poems by Robert Walser, translated by Daniele Pantano, Black Lawrence Press. “Oppressive Light: Selected Poems by Robert Walser represents the first collection of Robert Walser’s poetry in English translation and an opportunity to experience Walser as he saw himself at the beginning and at the end of his literary career––as a poet. The collection also includes notes on dates of composition, draft versions the printed poems represent, which volume of the Werkausgabe the poems were first published in, and brief biographical information on characters and locations that appear in the poems and may not be known to readers.”

February 26: Robert Walser Symposium, Goethe-Institut Chicago. Coinciding with the “In the Spirit of Walser” exhibition, Goethe-Institut Chicago is holding a symposium on the author at 3 p.m. on Sunday, February 26, featuring Thomas Schuette, Susan Bernofsky, Joerg Kreienbrock, and Michal Pawel Markowski, and (possibly) other guests. The final program will be announced in the coming weeks.

March 24: Robert Walser Festival, Institute Robert Walser, Newcastle, UK. Formed in 2011, the Institute Robert Walser holds public meetings for artists, writers, performers, musicians and others inspired by Walser’s writing. Scheduled to appear at the March festival are scholars Daniel Medin and Jo Catling, translator Daniele Pantano, artist Billy Childish, representatives from the Walser Zentrum in Berne, and many others.

April 24: Thirty Poems, translated by Christopher Middleton, New Directions. “A deluxe edition of the Swiss master’s best poems. In a small, exquisite clothbound format resembling the early Swiss and German editions of Walser’s work, Thirty Poems collects famed translator Christopher Middleton’s favorite poems from the more than five hundred Walser wrote. The illustrations range from an early poem in perfect copperplate handwriting, to one from a 1927 Czech-German newspaper, to a microscript.”

June 5: “The Walk,” translated by Susan Bernofsky, New Directions Paperback. “The Walk was the first piece of Walser’s work to appear in English, and the only one translated before his death. However, Walser heavily revised his most famous novella, altering nearly every sentence, rendering the baroque tone of his tale into something more spare. An introduction by translator Susan Bernofsky explains the history of The Walk, and the differences between its two versions.”

Sam :: Dec.19.2011 :: Uncategorized :: 5 Comments »

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