Poetic Offerings: Gedichtlesung mit Jason Allen-Paisant, James Noël und Neneh Sowe

Throughout history, poets have launched movements, challenged oppressive regimes, and sparked dialogue. Poetry has thus become a powerful tool for activism and social change. For this closing event of the festival program, we have invited a duo comprising two powerful poetic voices: Jason Allen-Paisant and James Noël, accompanied by violinist Neneh Sowe. Allen-Paisant will read an excerpt from his long poem*SNOW*, which will soon be published in book form. In it, he does not focus on snow merely as a landscape element or a climatic phenomenon. Rather, he treats it as a psychological state, a historical force, and a metaphysical atmosphere. At its core,SNOWforms a counter-cosmology centered on the Mesoamerican feathered serpent Quetzalcoatl. The work attempts to make sense of phenomena such as recurrence, catastrophe, sacrifice, struggle, and time itself in today’s crisis-ridden world. In the work, Quetzalcoatl also becomes the poet’s beloved. According to Allen-Paisant, there exists “an erotic-mythical system that flows beneath the book’s political mood.”  

James Noël’s poetry collection*Paons*explores questions of identity, cultural heritage, and the uncertainties of human experience, focusing in particular on the context of Haitian culture. With vivid imagery and evocative language, Noël reflects on personal and collective stories, using the magnificentpaons(peacocks) as a metaphor for beauty and grandeur amid the struggles and aspirations of people confronting life’s difficulties. The poems often interweave elements of memory, resilience, and the search for belonging. They invite readers to immerse themselves in the emotional landscapes of his narrative. The collection is conceived as a powerful tribute to the indomitable spirit of those who defy all odds and seek meaning.

Part ofBwa Kayiman: Crossing the Mangrove.

Location: Sylvia Wynter Foyer
In English and French