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Joan Margarit i Consarnau

ジョアン・マルガリット・イ・コンサルナウ

Joan Margarit i Consarnau

Aliases: Joan Margarit

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1938-05-11 (Sanaüja, Province of Lleida, Spain)
Died
2021-02-16 (Sant Just Desvern, Spain) age 82
Nationality
Spanish
Languages
Spanish, Catalan
Residence History
Sanaüja (birthplace) → Canary Islands (family residence) → Barcelona (studies and professional activity) → Sant Just Desvern (later residence)

Career

Occupations
poet, architect, professor
Active Years
1963-2021
Affiliations
Polytechnic University of Catalonia (faculty), Architectural practice (with Carle Buxadé)

Education

Technical School of Architecture, Polytechnic University of Catalonia (Barcelona)
Faculty of Architecture / Department of Structural Calculations / Architecture
Degree: Architect (建築学位)
Period: 1956–1962
Year of Graduation: 1962
Country: Spain
Returned to Barcelona in 1956 to complete architecture studies; later taught at the same school.

Awards

Vicent Andrés Estellés Award
1981
Result: winner
Miquel de Palol Award
1982
Result: winner
Serra d'Or Critics Prize
1982
Organization: Serra d'Or
Result: winner
Carles Riba Award
1985
Result: winner
Cavall Verd Award
2005
Result: winner
National Literature Award of the Generalitat of Catalonia
2008
Organization: Generalitat of Catalonia
Result: winner
National Prize for Poetry (Premio Nacional de Poesía)
2008
Work: Casa de Misericòrdia
Organization: Spanish Government
Result: winner
Rosalía de Castro Award
2008
Result: winner
Pablo Neruda Ibero-American Poetry Award
2017
Organization: Chile (Pablo Neruda Foundation / awarding body)
Result: winner
Miguel de Cervantes Prize
2019
Organization: Ministry of Culture (Cervantes Prize committee)
Result: winner
Premio Víctor Sandoval Poetas del Mundo Latino
2013
Result: winner
Poetry Book Society Recommended Translation
2016
Work: Tugs in the Fog (translation)
Organization: Poetry Book Society
Result: recommended
Jaume Fuster Award (Associació d’Escriptors en Llengua Catalana)
2016
Organization: Associació d’Escriptors en Llengua Catalana
Result: winner

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

L'ombra de l'altre mar

1981 Poetry collection

An early collection addressing memory and the passage of time through personal poems.

memorytimeloss

Remolcadors entre la boira

1995 Poetry collection

Uses maritime imagery to explore solitude and human relationships. Translated into English as 'Tugs in the Fog'.

solitudehuman relationshipssea
Translations
  • Tugs in the Fog (English translation by Anna Crowe)

Casa de Misericòrdia

2007 Poetry collection

A collection that delves into loss, mercy and family; it earned him a major national poetry prize.

lossfamilymercy

Joana

2002 Poetry collection

A series of poems confronting personal loss and memory, focusing on family and intimacy.

familymemorypersonal loss

Bibliography

  • L'ombra de l'altre mar (1981)
  • Vell malentès (1981)
  • El passat i la joia (1982)
  • Remolcadors entre la boira (1995)
  • Joana (2002)
  • Casa de Misericòrdia (2007)
  • Misteriosament feliç (2008)
  • Poesia amorosa completa (1980–2000) (2001)

Adaptations

  • Poem recitations with musical backdrops (collaborations with Pere Rovira, Gerard Quintana, Miquel Poveda, etc.)

Translations of Works

  • Remolcadors entre la boira → Tugs in the Fog (tr. Anna Crowe, Bloodaxe Books, 2006)
  • Strangely Happy (English translation by Anna Crowe, 2011)
  • Love Is a Place (English translation by Anna Crowe, 2016)
  • Russian translation 'Ogni mgnoveniy' (Flames of the Moments), 2003

Style & Themes

Literary Style
clear and emotive dictionconcise lyrical expressionarchitectural sense of structure
Recurring Motifs
memorytimefamilylossarchitectural imagery

Health

  • cancer
    後年(最終的に2021年に死因となる)
    He suffered from cancer in later years and died of the disease in 2021.

Legacy

Joan Margarit was a Catalan poet whose work was informed by his background as an architect and educator. Widely translated and highly regarded across the Spanish-speaking world, he received the Miguel de Cervantes Prize in 2019 among other honors.

Academic Societies

  • Associació d’Escriptors en Llengua Catalana

Archives

  • Held in Catalan cultural archives and major national libraries (e.g., Biblioteca de Catalunya)
  • Records at the National Library of Spain (BNE)

In Popular Culture

  • Recordings of poem recitations with musicians have been produced and released.

Quotes

  • “Poetry is an act of love.”
    Source: Página/12 article 'Poesía, acto de amor' (2017)

Trivia

  • He worked professionally as an architect and taught structural calculations at university for many years.
  • Most of his poetry is written in Catalan, though he also published in Spanish.
  • He received the Miguel de Cervantes Prize in 2019.
  • He died of cancer in 2021.