Merano Poetry Prize
1 appearances
-
Edition 16 (2022) Winner
Alexandra Bernhardt
アレクサンドラ・ベルンハルト
Alexandra Bernhardt
Pen Names:
Oskar Seltsam（Pseudonym used for children's poetry）
Profile
- Gender
- Female
- Born
- Bavaria, Germany
- Nationality
- Germany
- Languages
- German, English, Catalan, Danish, Icelandic, Polish
- Residence History
- Bavaria (place of birth) → Vienna, Austria (since 2002)
Career
- Occupations
- philosopher, poet, writer, translator, editor, publisher
- Active Years
- 2002-
- Nominations
- 2017 nominated for the Spiegelungen Poetry Prize (audience award)
Education
| Institution | Faculty | Department | Degree | Period | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of Vienna | Faculty of Philosophy (studies in philosophy, comparative literature, classical philology, oriental studies) | Philosophy, Comparative Literature, Classical Philology, Oriental Studies | Magister / Master's (卒業論文あり) | 2003–2007 | Austria |
University of Vienna
Faculty of Philosophy (studies in philosophy, comparative literature, classical philology, oriental studies)
/ Philosophy, Comparative Literature, Classical Philology, Oriental Studies
Degree:
Magister / Master's (卒業論文あり)
Period:
2003–2007
Year of Graduation:
2007
Country:
Austria
Graduated from Peter Kampits' class. Master's thesis dealt with the teleological concept of the philosophical term 'person'.
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Scholarship of the mentoring programme of the Bavarian Film Center Munich | — | — | Bavarian Film Center Munich | 受給 |
| 2017 | Spiegelungen Poetry Prize (audience award) | — | — | Spiegelungen | ノミネート |
| 2020 | Scholarship by the Cultural Department of the City of Vienna | — | — | Cultural Department of the City of Vienna | 受給 |
| 2021 | Vienna Literature Grant | — | — | City of Vienna | 受給 |
| 2022 | Media Prize of the RAI South Tyrol at the Merano Poetry Prize | poetry cycle 'trutzlichtigall' | — | Merano Poetry Prize / RAI South Tyrol | 受賞 |
| 2023 | Project scholarship for literature by the Cultural Department of the City of Vienna | — | — | Cultural Department of the City of Vienna | 受給 |
| 2024 | Scholarship for literature by the Ministry of the Arts, Culture, the Civil Service and Sport (Austria) | — | — | Ministry of the Arts, Culture, the Civil Service and Sport (Austria) | 受給 |
Scholarship of the mentoring programme of the Bavarian Film Center Munich
2015
Organization:
Bavarian Film Center Munich
Result:
受給
Spiegelungen Poetry Prize (audience award)
2017
Organization:
Spiegelungen
Result:
ノミネート
Scholarship by the Cultural Department of the City of Vienna
2020
Organization:
Cultural Department of the City of Vienna
Result:
受給
Vienna Literature Grant
2021
Organization:
City of Vienna
Result:
受給
Media Prize of the RAI South Tyrol at the Merano Poetry Prize
2022
Work:
poetry cycle 'trutzlichtigall'
Organization:
Merano Poetry Prize / RAI South Tyrol
Result:
受賞
Project scholarship for literature by the Cultural Department of the City of Vienna
2023
Organization:
Cultural Department of the City of Vienna
Result:
受給
Scholarship for literature by the Ministry of the Arts, Culture, the Civil Service and Sport (Austria)
2024
Organization:
Ministry of the Arts, Culture, the Civil Service and Sport (Austria)
Result:
受給
Awards & Nominations
Works
Major Works
Et in Arcadia ego. - Poems
2017 Poetry collectionA collection that weaves classical references and forms into contemporary poetic fragments.
classical and contemporarymemoryform and freedom
Hinterwelt or From a Hall of Mirrors. - Stories
2018 Short storiesA collection of short stories concerned with mirrors, reflection, and boundaries between inside and outside; characterized by a fantastic and introspective voice.
boundariesfantasyself and other
White Salamanders. - Poems
2020 Poetry collectionPoems themed on nature and metamorphosis, notable for condensed imagery and sound arrangements.
naturetransformationcondensed imagery
Europaia. - Poems (European-ish)
2021 Poetry collection / experimental poemsA set of works that reconstructs Europe's cultural and historical layers through fragments and experimental techniques, employing multilingual elements and dialectal vocabulary.
Europeannessencountering the otherreconstruction of language
With 20 Animals around the World. - Poems (as Oskar Seltsam)
2022 Children's poemsA children's poetry book accompanied by illustrations by Andrzej Krauze; light-hearted pieces.
animalsjourneychildren's humor
Schwellenzeit. Of Honey and Poppy. - Poems
2022 Poetry collectionA poetry collection about thresholds and transitions, where natural motifs and ritual images intersect.
thresholdsnatureritual
Zoon poietikon. - Poems (Inventive Beast)
2024 Poetry collectionA recent work exploring poetic imagination and biological metaphors, centered on linguistic experiments and image manipulation.
imaginationanimal metaphorlanguage experiment
capvt mvndi. - Poems
2025 Poetry collectionA collection with a Latin-influenced title, experimental poems on fragmentation and reconstruction of the world.
fragmentationreconstructionLatin references
Bibliography
- Et in Arcadia ego. Poems. Sisyphus, 2017.
- Hinterwelt or From a Hall of Mirrors. Stories. Sisyphus, 2018.
- Weiße Salamander. Poems. edition offenes feld, 2020.
- Europaia. Poems. Sisyphus, 2021.
- With 20 Animals around the World. Poems. (as Oskar Seltsam). Edition Melos, 2022.
- Schwellenzeit. Of Honey and Poppy. Poems. Edition Melos, 2022.
- Zoon poietikon. Poems. Sisyphus, 2024.
- capvt mvndi. Poems. Edition Melos, 2025.
- Editor: Jahrbuch österreichischer Lyrik (several issues), 2019–2023.
Adaptations
- Musical settings / songs (several poems have been set to music)
Translations by Author
- Translations from Catalan into German
- Translation work from Danish, English, Icelandic, Polish into German
Translations of Works
- Translations into American English (selections of poems)
- Translations into Danish, Dutch, French, Slovene
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- Uses classical forms (sonnets) alongside fragile free formsDeconstruction and reconstruction of language, including dialectal and Middle High German elementsCondensed imagery and formal irony
- Recurring Motifs
- boundaries (sea, mirrors, borders)animal metaphorsnautical / ship imagery
Legacy
Bernhardt is valued for combining experimental approaches with classical poetic craft in contemporary German-language poetry. As an editor and publisher she supports new voices and has extended her influence through international translations and musical settings.
In Popular Culture
- Some poems have been set to music and performed as songs
Quotes
-
Alexandra Bernhardt masters the craft of poetry so well that she can elevate above the classical forms by using them. Alongside the elaborated old school sonnets, there are fragile free forms of poetry, full of gentle formal irony that makes everything that is said sparkle and glint.
Source: Edith-Ulla Gasser (ORF broadcast) (2018) -
These small, compacted forms do not restrict but rather provide space to follow the network of references. The typography may remind of a ship's bow or a sail; nautical vocabulary gives the poems a strong motivic compactness.
Source: Jury of the Merano Poetry Prize (about 'trutzlichtigall') (2022) -
In 'Europaia', Alexandra Bernhardt establishes what it means to be European through found, fractured, and experimental poems, reflecting Europe's long and shifting cultural identities. Bernhardt argues there is not one historical or present-day Europe, but multiple Europes frankensteined together.
Source: Hannah V Warren (translator / commentary) (2023)
Trivia
- Founded the independent Vienna-based publishing house Edition Melos in 2020.
- Writes children's poetry under the pseudonym Oskar Seltsam.
- Editor of the Jahrbuch österreichischer Lyrik since 2019.
- Has lived in Vienna since 2002.