Rooted spotlight: Conceição Evaristo
A poet and author regarded as the mother of writing in her native Brazil is bringing her acclaimed work to Leeds as part of Out of People’s Rooted programme of events.
Acclaimed writer, fiction author, and essayist Conceição Evaristo will be among the stellar line-up of Sound System: Music & Poetry of the Black Atlantic, taking place at Royal Armouries on Wednesday 8 October; tickets are £15 and can be purchased HERE.
Sound System is a global journey of music and poetry across the African continent, Black Britain, the Caribbean and South America, with Conceição’s work based on her experiences of being an Afro-Brazilian woman.
Staged in partnership with the National Poetry Centre and FLUP, with the support of the British Council and venue partner Royal Armouries, Sound System will see Conceição joined by iconic dub poetry and Black British activism pioneer, Linton Kwesi Johnson and internationally acclaimed T S Eliot Award winner Roger Robinson.
“When you understand Jamaica marking a cultural space in England, we can see how the poetry of the colonized subject returns to the space of the colonizer, dictating another rhythm of text, of narrative, of performance that inserts the bodies that were once subjugated,” said Conceição, who writes and performs in Portuguese.
“It is a poetry that transforms the language that was imposed upon it.
“It is as if poetry causes breaches, holes in the demarcated language and fills it in another way, with another language.
“That is why I am very excited to participate in Sound System: Music & poetry of the Black Atlantic in Leeds.”
The evening of poetic excellence will be chaired by two-time Forward Prize-winning writer, poet and artist Malika Booker.
Conceição is known as a great exponent of contemporary Brazilian literature. She writes about race, gender and class discrimination, especially of Black women.
In a recent interview with FluP she spoke about her writing process, saying:
“I think too much about what I am going to write. I choose the words and it has a fundamental fact – I never forget I am working with word art.”
Conceição holds a bachelor’s degree in Literature with a focus on Literary Studies from UFRJ; a master’s degree in Brazilian Literature from PUC/Rio, and a PhD in Comparative Literature from UFF. Her first publication was in 1990, in the Cadernos Negros series by the Quilombhoje group. She has published eight books, including the Jabuti Award winner, Olhos D’água (2015). Five of her books have been translated into English, French, Spanish, Arabic, and Slovak.
FLUP (The Festa Literária das Periferias or Literary Festival of the Peripheries, is a groundbreaking initiative aimed at fostering new literary experiences within Brazil’s peripheral communities. For over 12 years, FLUP has made a significant cultural impact in Rio de Janeiro, staging its events in communities such as Morro dos Prazeres, Vigário Geral, Mangueira, Babilônia, Vidigal, Cidade de Deus, Maré, Biblioteca Parque, the Rio Art Museum (MAR), Providência and Lapa. By operating in these territories, FLUP has opened pathways for books, ideas, and experiences that were previously marginalized, achieving far-reaching influence.
ROOTED has been made possible thanks to Arts Council England funding via its National Lottery Project Grants programme and with the support of our partners and supporters.