Mahmoud Darwich Poetry Day

Poetik Bazar is partnering with the Centre Pompidou and the arab world institute to pay a multifaceted and contemporary tribute to the Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwich (1941–2008).

Deeply influenced by the Palestinian cause, his work blends the personal and the political by exploring recurring themes of the homeland, the mother, identity, and exile.

At Poetik Bazar, we look forward to involving you in collective moments; we open the stage to radiate and share political joy. Thus, by dedicating this poetry event to Mahmoud Darwich, we wish to celebrate, across the globe, one of the greatest voices in Arabic poetry.

Both an act of resistance and a living memory of Palestine, Mahmoud Darwich’s poetry transcends time and place and continues to resonate powerfully today. Let’s echo his words.

Would you like to come and share a poem about the personal and the political? Or a text exploring themes of the homeland, the mother, identity, and exile? A text written in the style of Mahmoud Darwich or paying tribute to him?

Also, if you’re in the mood to perform, we invite you to come read and share excerpts from your favorite Mahmoud Darwich poems.

Learn more about Mahmoud Darwich:

Born on March 13, 1941, in Al-Birwa (Mandatory Palestine) and died on August 9, 2008, in Houston, Mahmoud Darwich wrote more than twenty collections of poetry and seven works of prose. Arguably the most widely read and translated Arab poet, Mahmoud Darwich is recognized as one of the leading voices in contemporary poetry in the Arab world.

Active in the Palestine Liberation Organization, he joined its Executive Committee in 1987, which he left in 1993 in protest against the Oslo Accords.

After more than thirty years in exile (notably in Beirut, Tunis, and Paris), he settled in Palestine—in Ramallah—where he continued his work until his death in 2008.