Vanda Martins’ Reflections as a Translator and Poet in Lithuania and Scotland

THU 12 OCT 2023 @ 7:00 PM – 8:30 PM

VENUE : ANATOMY LECTURE THEATRE, SUMMERHALL – 1, Summerhall, Edinburgh, EH9 1PL

AGE GROUP: 12+ (UNDER 16S WITH ADULT)

PART 1 : SOVIET DEPORTATIONS FROM LITHUANIA – REVELATION BY TRANSLATION – A talk by

Vanda Martins

PART 2 : POEMS INSPIRED BY LITHUANIAN AND SCOTTISH IMAGERY – A poetry recital by Vanda Martins

Vanda Martins is a Belarusian translator and poet living in Lithuania, who graduated from Napier University, Edinburgh. She will present some of her recent work in an illustrated talk and poetry recital.

The talk focusses on the Soviet Deportation of Lithuanians in 1941 as described from personal experience by Dalia Grinkevičiute in her acclaimed book “Lithuanians by the Laptev Sea” known in English as “Shadows on the Tundra.” Vanda will describe the remarkable story of this book, which was buried from sight for over 40 years, and the motivation for her translation of this into Belarusian.
The poetry recital in English, with reference to Vanda’s poems in Belarusian from her 2020 book “Sea of Dreams”, will include some of her poems on Vilnius and references to Lithuanian and Scottish landscapes, architecture, culture, traditions, history, with titles such as , “On the Way from London to Edinburgh”, “Portobello”, “On the Banks of the Water of Leith”.

This event is a rare opportunity to hear a traumatic part of Lithuanian history, and also poetic impressions of Scotland through the eyes of a Belarusian now living in Lithuania.
The event is sponsored by the Anglo Belarusian Society.

Tickets: £10 ; £5 concessions, students, OAPs, members of UK Belarusian and Lithuanian Societies