beautiful naked coyotées / belles coyotes desnudes

Between 2022 and 2023, the Poetry Translation Centre (UK) and the Universidad de San Andrés (Argentina) partnered together to run a Queer Digital Residency programme to support two queer-identifying translators. We worked with one translator based in Argentina, translating from English into Spanish, and one translator based in the UK, translating from Spanish into English. The translators were Paula Galindez and Jon Herring, and the programme offered them structured support and paid time to explore the work of a living poet of their choice as well as queer translation as a practice.

During the residency the translators received tailored seminar support, led translation workshops, produced a new body of translations, and generated videos reflecting on the translation process.

The Queer Digital Residency came to its final climax with a bilingual Spanish and English poetry event LGBTQ+ venue The Triangle in Deptford, South East London. It was an event with all the essentials: poetry readings, pink drinks, and chatter about translating queerness, Scots poetry and the Roadrunner's erotic fixations with our Queer Digital Residents Paula Galindez and Jon Herring.

They read poems by the poets they have translated: Scottish poet Jackie Kay’s poems read in Spanish for the first time alongside new English translations of Argentinian poet Osvaldo Bossi. Ringleading for the evening was queer British-Argentinian poet and translator Leo Boix.

This project was possible thanks to support from the Jan Michalski Foundation, Oxford Brookes, Universidad de San Andrés and Arts Council England.

The project is part of the subthemes Literature as a tool for social equality and Global unity and shared futures.