Invisible Cities, Visible Effects
On November 21st, the AUP Center for Writer's and Translators released their 30 issue of their Cahiers series. For those unaware, the Cahiers series is a small magazine co-published by AUP Center for Writers and Translators, spearheaded by Professor Daniel Medin and Professor Dan Gunn, and Sylph Editions, a small publishing house based in London. The magazine prides itself on featuring writers that are unknown and provide them with English translations. Each edition of the Cahiers series is illustrated by a different artist, whose pieces are closely connected to the writing. The goal of the Cahiers publication is to explore the relationship between writing and translating, whether that be from language to language, or something as abstract as translating the art of textiles to the written word, as Cahiers issue no. 6 did. This is a special edition of the Cahiers series, as it marks the 10th anniversary of its founding.
This thirtieth issue is titled Invisible Cities, written by Silvia Brownrigg (once an associate professor at AUP) and illustrated by Tacita Dean. She came back to AUP to read selections from the issue. Like most literature events, it was a quiet affair, with fifteen to twenty people in attendance, all sitting in a semi-circle. Prof. Dan Gunn and Silvia Brownrigg sat facing the audience. The piece has a unifying theme of travel and borders. There are five different countries (all fictional), and every story is about a nameless traveler, never the same person, going to these fictional countries. Discussions about the nature of borders, national identity, and the experience of traveling alone to strange places without much support were brought up and discussed between Gunn and Brownrigg.
Image Credit: SylphEditions
The event was only an hour long. The first 45 minutes was the presentation and the last fifteen were a brief question and answer session. The presentation was well received, as mutterings between faculty, students, and some literature fans from around Paris conversed in isolated circles. It was an enjoyable, quiet event, well put together and well organized. A lot of effort went into the making of the magazine and the event planning, and it showed.
You can find more details about the Cahiers series here. You can buy the magazine at the AUP bookstore or at the Sylph Editions Webstore.
