Hispanic and Latinx Heritage Poetry Festival
Ohio Wesleyan University to Host Two-Day Event Oct. 9-10
DELAWARE, Ohio – In celebration of National Hispanic Heritage Month, Ohio Wesleyan University will welcome poets with roots in Argentina, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, and Spain to take part in a two-day Hispanic and Latinx Heritage Poetry Festival.
The festival will be held Oct. 9-10 and include the following free community events:
- 6-8 p.m. Oct. 9 – All guest poets and translators will participate in a Poetry Festival Reading, in Room 301 of Merrick Hall, 65 S. Sandusky St., Delaware.
- 10-11 a.m. Oct. 10 – Poet Carlos Aguasaco (Colombia) will present “Don Quijote, Batman & El Chapulín Colorado,” in Room 301 of Merrick Hall. Aguasaco is an associate professor of Latin American Cultural Studies at The City College of New York and the founder of both the Americas Poetry Festival of New York, a multilingual poetry festival, and Artepoética Press, a Hispanic publishing house dedicated to publishing works related to Latin American cultures. Aguasaco has published six books of poetry, including his most recent “Piedra Guadalquivir /Guadalquivir Stone.”
- 6-7:30 p.m. Oct. 10 – All guest poets and translators will participate in Poetry Book Presentations, in the Bayley Room on the second floor of Beeghly Library, 43 Rowland Ave., Delaware.
In addition to Aguasaco, other poets presenting at Ohio Wesleyan’s first Hispanic and Latinx Heritage Poetry Festival are:
- Guillermo Arango (Cuba), author of six books of poetry, including “Ceremonias de amor y olvido/Ceremonies of Love and oblivion” and retired language professor. He has earned several literary awards and three National Endowment for the Humanities grants for research and creative writing. Now living in Ohio, he is a member of the (Exiled) Cuban Writers Pen Club.
- Mauricio Espinoza (Costa Rica), poet, essayist, and translator. He is an assistant professor of Spanish and Latin American literature at the University of Cincinnati, and his work explores representation of Latinos/as in U.S. media and popular culture. His latest poetry book, “Respiración de piedras,” was awarded the 2015 National Award from the University of Costa Rica.
- Luis Fernando Macías Zuluaga (Colombia), poet, narrator, essayist, author of children’s works, publisher, and professor of literature at the University of Antioquia. His more than 10 books of poetry include “El jardín del origen/The garden of the origin.” Macías is the executive editor of the Medellin’s subway book collection “Palabras rodantes/Rolling Words.”
- Daniel Montoly (Dominican Republic), finalist in the Latin Poets for Humanity contest and a winner of the Editor’s Choice Award of The International Poets Society. His books include “Ritualidad del círculo/The Circle’s Rituality” and “Tránsito del agua/Water Transit.”
- María Paz Moreno (Spain), poet, essayist, and literary critic. She is a professor of Spanish at the University of Cincinnati. As a poet, she has published seven books and been included in anthologies including “Poetisas Españolas 1976-2001/Spanish Women Poets 1976-2001.”
- Carolina Zamudio (Argentina), poet, essayist, and journalist. She is a member of the editorial board for Literariedad Magazine in Colombia and has published several books of poetry including “La oscuridad de lo que brilla/The Darkness of What Shines.” She has lived in several countries, among them Saudi Arabia, Switzerland, Colombia, and Uruguay.
Professors Abeer Abdel-Hafez (Egypt) of Ohio Wesleyan and Jennifer Rathbun of Ashland University, internationally renowned and extensively published poetry specialists and translators, will provide readings of some of the translations at the community events.
Ohio Wesleyan’s Hispanic and Latinx Heritage Poetry Festival was created through the work of the National Hispanic and Latinx Heritage Planning Committee, including students from Viva Latinx, Ohio Wesleyan’s Latin American student association.
Learn more about Ohio Wesleyan’s Department of Modern Foreign Languages at www.owu.edu/MFL.
Founded in 1842, Ohio Wesleyan University is one of the nation’s premier liberal arts universities. Located in Delaware, Ohio, the private university offers more than 90 undergraduate majors and competes in 23 NCAA Division III varsity sports. Through Ohio Wesleyan’s signature OWU Connection program, students integrate knowledge across disciplines, build a diverse and global perspective, and apply their knowledge in real-world settings. Ohio Wesleyan is featured in the book “Colleges That Change Lives,” listed on the latest President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll with Distinction, and included in the U.S. News & World Report and Princeton Review “best colleges” lists. Learn more at www.owu.edu.