Radna Fabias
(Curaçao, 1983) won all major poetry awards in The Netherlands and Belgium for her 2018 poetry debut Habitus. This startling, existentialist collection deals with Curaçao, feeling at home, and her role as a (black) woman, immigrant and outsider. She studied Writing for Performance at the Utrecht School of the Arts. Fabias' work is characterized by variety, both in terms of content and style. De Groene Amsterdammer magazine commented in 2018: "Fabias dares to utilize every nook and cranny of poetry as an art form; some poems are short and lyrical, others narrative and long, sometimes they are clear and accessible and then hermetic and experimental." Habitus has been published in France, Italy, Germany, Argentina and the USA. Fabias also translated poetry collections by British poet Warsan Shire and Nobel Prize winner Louise Glück into Dutch.
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Archive available for: Radna Fabias
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All the World's Excuses
With: Angel ArunA, Astrid H. Roemer, Caleb Azumah Nelson, Chika Unigwe, David Diop, Dean Bowen, Martine Woudt, Nazrina Rodjan, Neske Beks, Rachida Lamrabet, Radna Fabias, Sarita Bajnath, Shantie Singh
In the Winternachten festival programme All the World's Excuses, prominent authors Chika Unigwe (US, a.o. On Black Sisters' Street), David Diop (France, International Booker Prize-winner for At Night All Blood is Black) and Caleb Azumah Nelson (UK, a.o. the well-received debut novel Open Water) talked about the global traces of slavery and how this permeates our current society, literature and their books. They addressed (post)colonialism, migration and identity formation. And, of course, they read from their own work. Interviewers were Rachida Lamrabet and Dean Bowen.
Furthermore, writer Neske Beks told about how her new book De kleine Morrison (The Small Morrison, 2023), an introduction into reading Toni Morrison's books from a Black perspective, relates to the theme of All the World's Excuses, and if that also applies to Dutch or Flemish authors with roots in former colonies. Writer Astrid H. Roemer and poet Radna Fabias also contributed with readings from their work. Singer Angel ArunA performed her own work and poems by poet and singer-songwriter Raj Mohan in Sarnámi, the language of people with a Hindustan background in Suriname and The Netherlands.
Preceding the performances in Zaal 1, we opened the evening programme in the lobby of Theater aan het Spui with a short pre-programme with readings by writer Chika Unigwe and poet Dean Bowen from their works, hosted by Sarita Bajnath.
All the World's Excuses asked questions about how stories about slavery and its abolition have taken their place in our collective memory, and about what authors pass on to young people searching for their (invisible) story and identity in the country where they were born.
On all continents, stories about these subjects went unheard, were suppressed or were rendered invisible for a long time. Thanks to the talent and work of many authors, these stories have since found a home in world literature. Through this literature, the weight of this history and the importance of sharing these stories is made palpable.
Bookstore De Vries van Stockum was present in the lobby with a stand offering books by participating authors of this programme, among others!This programme was curated by Shantie Singh, author of a.o. the novels Vervoering (2014) and De kier (2020).
This event was in English; translations of non-English readings were simultaneously projected on a screen.
With day ticket also to afternoon programme Verhalen die verbinden (Connecting Stories)
Preceding All the World's Excuses on Sunday 16 April as of 14:30h in Theater aan het Spui was the, Dutch spoken, Winternachten festival afternoon programme Verhalen die verbinden. A reduced price day ticket for both festival programmes on 16 April was available. -
Radical Happiness - #SoulCare
With: Bahghi, Gil Gomes Leal, Hassnae Bouazza, Jens Meijen, Koleka Putuma, Munganyende Hélène Christelle, Radna Fabias
"Joy is an act of resistance" is a slogan that is gaining traction. Can happiness be a form of activism? Is there such a thing as restful resistance? And why is self-care so important? These questions constituted the foundation of the final program of the online part of the Winternachten International Literature Festival 2021 - you end up in a warm bath of radical inspiration.
1:04 - Koleka Putuma (South Africa), recitation.
3:13 - Radna Fabias (Netherlands), recitation I translated work by Koleka Putuma.
5:00 - Koleka Putuma, interview.
23:38 - Koleka Putuma, recitation.
24:48 - Radna Fabias, recitation II translated work by Koleka Putuma.
26:15 - Gil Gomes Leal, dance performance.
31:40 - Radna Fabias, interview.
42:31 - Bahghi (Netherlands), song performance.
45:42 - Munganyende Hélène Christelle (Netherlands), recitation and interview.
56:10 - Jens Meijen (Belgium), video reading.
1:01:19 - Radna Fabias, recitation III translated work by Koleka Putuma."It's up to us": this emerges from the work of photographer Tyler Mitchell, whose summer 2019 exhibit I Can Make You Feel Good at the FOAM Photography Museum in Amsterdam was a sensitive ode to a "black utopia". Mitchell photographed young black people looking relaxed, sensitive and proud in idyllic settings. It was a beacon of hope for how things could look and a sharp contrast to the dominant images of black people in the media usually associated with strife, pain and violence.
Mitchell's work is one of the sources of inspiration for programme maker Fleur Jeras, together with the poetry of the South African poet and performer Koleka Putuma - especially her poem Black Joy from the volume Collective Amnesia. Poet Alfred Schaffer, who translated Putuma's poetry into Dutch for the magazine Terras, wrote the following in the magazine Groene Amsterdammer: "You could say that Putuma in looking for a way out of the impasse with Collective Amnesia; she must escape the expectations of both the white and black public. Love could be an escape route."
A fragment of the poem Black Joy by Koleka Putuma, from her collection Collective Amnesia:
But
isn't funny?
That when they ask about black childhood,
all they are interested in is our pain,
as if the joy-parts were accidental.I write love poems, too,
but
you only want to see my mouth torn open in protest,
as if my mouth were a wound
with pus and gangrene
for joy.Journalist Hassnae Bouazza talked about this poem with Putuma via an online connection from Capetown. We also brought you Putuma's work in other forms: poet Radna Fabias read from Putuma's work in their Dutch-language versions and singer-songwriter Bahghi and dancer Gil Gomes Leal presented new works inspired by Black Joy.
Read here the three poems by Koleka Putuma.
Additionally, poet Jens Meijen and writer-podcast maker Munganyende Hélène Christelle gave practical examples about how the create peace of mind and reflect on activism, a state of happiness and the future.
Learn more here:
Bahghi
website
SoundcloudHassnae Bouazza
websiteMunganyende Hélène Christelle
website
Instagram
Podcast Fufu & DadelsRadna Fabias
Video: Radna Fabia recites in DichterBij (VPRO) her poem RoestplaatsGil Gomes Leal
website: performance Ayahuasca by Gil Gomes Leal & ISH Dance CollectiveJens Meijen
Facebook
Short story Kaddisj, publication in Hard//hoofd
Koleka Putuma
website
instagram
Video: Koleka Putuma recites from Collective Amnesia on the train from Kaapstad-Muizenburg -
#SoulCare: Radical Happiness
With: Bahghi, Gil Gomes Leal, Hassnae Bouazza, Jens Meijen, Koleka Putuma, Munganyende Hélène Christelle, Radna Fabias
"Joy is an act of resistance" is a slogan that is gaining traction. Can happiness be a form of activism? Is there such a thing as restful resistance? And why is self-care so important? These questions constituted the foundation of this concluding program of the first, online part of the Winternachten International Literature Festival 2021 - a warm bath of radical inspiration.
"It's up to us": this theme emerges from the work of photographer Tyler Mitchell, whose summer 2019 exhibit I Can Make You Feel Good at Amsterdam's FOAM photography museum was a sensitive ode to a "black utopia". Mitchell photographed young black people looking relaxed, sensitive and proud in idyllic settings. It was a beacon of hope for how things could look and a sharp contrast to dominant media images of black people that are usually associated with strife, pain and violence.
Mitchell's work was one source of inspiration for programmer Fleur Jeras, as was the poetry of the South African poet and performer Koleka Putuma - especially her poem Black Joy from the volume Collective Amnesia. Poet Alfred Schaffer, who translated Putuma's poetry into Dutch for Terras magazine, wrote the following in the magazine Groene Amsterdammer: "You could say that Putuma in looking for a way out of the impasse with Collective Amnesia; she must escape the expectations of both the white and black public. Love could be an escape route."
A fragment of the poem Black Joy by Koleka Putuma, from her collection Collective Amnesia:
But
isn't funny?
That when they ask about black childhood,
all they are interested in is our pain,
as if the joy-parts were accidental.I write love poems, too,
but
you only want to see my mouth torn open in protest,
as if my mouth were a wound
with pus and gangrene
for joy.Journalist Hassnae Bouazza discussed this poem with Putuma via a video connection from Capetown. We also brought you Putuma's work in other forms: poet Radna Fabias read Dutch translations of Putuma's work, while singer-songwriter Bahghi and dancer Gil Gomes Leal presented new works inspired by Black Joy.
Read three poems by Koleka Putuma here.
In addition, poet Jens Meijen and writer-podcaster Munganyende Hélène Christelle gave practical examples about how to create peace of mind and reflected on activism, a state of happiness, and the future.
More background:
Bahghi
website
SoundcloudHassnae Bouazza
websiteMunganyende Hélène Christelle
website
Instagram
Podcast Fufu & DadelsRadna Fabias
Video: Radna Fabia recites her poem Roestplaats on DichterBij (VPRO)Gil Gomes Leal
website: Ayahuasca performance by Gil Gomes Leal & ISH Dance CollectiveJens Meijen
Facebook
Short story Kaddisj, published in Hard//hoofd
Koleka Putuma
website
instagram
Video: Koleka Putuma reads from Collective Amnesia on the Capetown-Muizenburg train -
Opening Night - Free the Word!
With: Dareen Tatour, Eelco Bosch van Rosenthal, Gioconda Belli, Hassnae Bouazza, Jennifer Clement, Madeleine Thien, Michiel Servaes, Radna Fabias, Raj Mohan, Robert van Asten, Ton van de Langkruis
Opening NIght of the Winternachten festival is dedicated to freedom of expression, featuring poetry, music, the Free the Word! speech, and the Oxfam Novib PEN Awards ceremony.
Robert van Asten, The Hague Elderman for Mobility, Culture and Strategy opened the festival. Radna Fabias, winner of the 2018 C. Buddingh Prize for best Dutch-language poetry debut, started the night off with a reading from her collection Habitus. Then the Mexican-American writer Jennifer Clement, chair of PEN International, delivered a statement about freedom of expression. After that, Canadian writer Madeleine Thien delivered the Free the Word! speech.
Nicaraguan writer and poet Gioconda Belli and Palestinian poet Dareen Tatour who currently risk their freedom and lives to seek out and publish the truth were honoured during the prestigious Oxfam Novib PEN Awards ceremony. Oxfam Novib director Michiel Servaes handed out the prizes. Also Italian writer Roberto Saviano received an Oxfam Novib PEN Award. Since the publication of his book Gomorrah (2006), he lives under police protection and could not attend. Afterwards, the other two winners discussed their work and experiences with writer and journalist Hassnae Bouazza and Dutch national news presenter Eelco Bosch van Rosenthal. They read from their own poetry. English spoken.
The Opening Night programme was framed with musical performances by singer-songwriter Raj Mohan and hosted by Hassnae Bouazza. The evening is a collaboration between Oxfam Novib, PEN International and PEN Nederland.
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Spot On Young Poets
The literary future performed for you! Francis Broekhuijsen presented the students of High-school students from Dalton Den Haag, Edith Stein College and Chr. College De Populier reciting their own poetry, the result of the Spot on Young Poets workshops and poetry lessons given at the schools by members of the Hague Poets Guild. Appearing with them were poet Radna Fabias, winner of the 2018 C. Buddingh Prize, and rapper, spoken-word artist and writer HemelBesem from South Africa. Sumai Yahya, a participant from last year and winner of the 2018 Young Campert Prize, also performed. DJ Socrates took care of the sounds and beats.
One or two finalists for the 2019 Young Campert Prize were chosen during the Spot on Young Poets programmes on Friday and Saturday. The finalists recited their poems once more on Sunday during the Schrijversfeest (Writers Fest). One of them was chosen by the public and receivde the award of being the best Hague student poet. -
Artificial ignorance: Digital Failure
In order to protect ourselves, Radbout professor Martha Larson pleads for artificial ignorance: some data must be deliberately overlooked in IT. Eight authors made Larson's idea the starting point of their performance. They looked at technology in a different, creative way. What does technology reveal about its inventor? Also, the smart thermostat, the pacemaker and Google Maps may help us, but do they also define us? And what is the value of a digital error or failure?
