Clara Janés Writer
Clara Janés Nadal, born in Barcelona (6 November 1940), is a Spanish poet, writer and translator. She is regarded as one of the great love poets of contemporary Spanish literature, a designation given her by one of twentieth century Spain's most respected women writers, Rosa Chacel. Janés's works often employ mystical language and interior explorations in an effort to find union with the "other."She studied Philology in Barcelona and in Pamplona, where she completed her bachelor's degree, and she received the Maître des lettres from the University of Paris IV: Paris-Sorbonne in comparative literature.Janés employs multiple genres (poetry, narrative, essay, anthology, translation, photography and music), and her work includes diverse cultural and linguistic facets. She has translated Turkish, Czech, English, Chinese, Persian, Arabic and French authors, and she has explored ancient religious traditions from many cultures. Her work includes translations of the Czech poets Vladimír Holan and Jaroslav Seifert. She has also translated works by Marguerite Duras, Nathalie Sarraute, Katherine Mansfield, William Golding, Ahmad Shamlou, Forough Farrokhzad and Mohsen Emadi. When she translates works from Turkish, Persian, Chinese and Arabic, she is generally assisted by speakers of these languages, which lends her poetic and translation activity a collaborative aspect that corresponds with her interest in connecting with "others". In 1992, she won the Turkish Tutav Foundation Prize for her work with translation. In 1997 she received the Premio Nacional a la obra de un traductor for her translations of Eastern and Central European writers. In 2000, she received the First Category Medal from the Czech Republic. She has participated in several literature gatherings and her works have been translated to more 20 languages. In 1998 she won Premio Internacional de Poesía Ciudad de Melilla for Arcángel de sombra.