Talk : Soigner est une variante du verbe aimer
Talk
Friday 18 September
18:00 - 19:00
Price: Gratuit - Gratis - Free
Language: French
Location: Piscine
with
Ouanessa Younsi, Julie Lombe et Nelly Slim
Presentations
A conversation with three poets who also work in the healthcare field: Ouanessa Younsi is a psychiatrist, Nelly Slim is a therapist, and Julie Lombe is a massage therapist. In this discussion, they will explore the inseparable nature of their two disciplines—how one nourishes the other, and vice versa. They will also talk about love—the love we give to patients, because to heal, we must love, listen, feel, read between the lines of the body and stories, and be open to the vulnerabilities of others.
a talk in French with three poets who are also active in the field of care
Our speakers
Ouanessa Younsi
Ouanessa Younsi is an author and psychiatrist. She has published five poetry collections with Mémoire d’encrier, the most recent being *Nous ne sommes pas des fées* (co-written with Louise Dupré) and *Quand je vis*. She has also published two literary essays that explore the theme of care: *Soigner, aimer* (Mémoire d’encrier) and *Soigner écrire* (Presses de l’Université de Montréal). For the latter book, she received the 2024 Études françaises Award and the Governor General’s Literary Award in the Essay category. She also co-edited the anthology *Femmes rapaillées*. Between patients, she writes; between books, she cares for others.
Nelly Slim
Nelly Slim is an author, performer, and therapist. Published in 2025, her first novel, *Between Here and Before There Is the Sea*, explores the themes of migration and uprooting. It was awarded the Gouincourt Prize for Lesbian Literature. She is also co-author of the collection *It’s Been Lovely but I Have to Scream Now*—an anthology of a queer and feminist fanzine—and served on the editorial board of the decolonial journal *Comme nous brûlons*. Her writing also appears in short-form pieces published in magazines such as *Censored*, *Woman Journal*, and *Foehn*. Her performances extend her artistic practice with a focus on ritualistic practices.
Julie Lombe
Julie Lombe, who is of Belgian-Congolese descent, has been a slam poet with the L-Slam collective since 2015. She won the “Paroles Urbaines” literary prize from the French Community of Belgium in 2019 and has since been sharing her poetry and her method for teaching slam throughout the French-speaking world. Her texts, at times powerful and at times humorous, address intersectional issues related to feminism, decolonialism, and social class, as well as issues related to care.
After performing *Pauvre fille!* in 2025, she is currently co-creating her next show, *Rendre Soin*. Based on the book of the same name (Editions Blast), it explores care from a political perspective. Julie Lombe also offers “Literary Massages” and slam poetry talks on quality of life at work.