The official award ceremony took place on Saturday the 17th of October in the Capitol Music Theatre.
‘I would like to thank the City of Wroclaw, the publishing house and the translators,’ said Serhiy Zhadan at the moment of receiving the Angelus Award. ‘Awards like these are a good opportunity to notice contemporary problems. Today a number of Ukrainian citizens, including Nadiya Savchenko [a Ukrainian pilot who was taken captive by pro-Russian rebels during the war in Donbass in June 2014 - note from editors], are political prisoners in the territory of the Russian Federation. We must remember, particularly in Central Europe, that these people are imprisoned unlawfully,’ he stressed. ‘I want to express my solidarity with them and shift your attention from literature to them.’
Serhiy Zhadan was born in Starobilsk in 1974 and lives in Kharkiv. He is a poet and a writer, and his books have been translated into 16 languages. He translates from German. His books ‘The History of Culture’, ‘Big Mac’, ‘Depeche Mode’, ‘Anarchy in the UKR’, ‘Anthem of Democratic Youth’, ‘Voroshilovgrad’ and ‘Mesopotamia’ have been published by Wydawnictwo Czarne in Poland. Apart from that, Zhadan is a singer of the band Sobaky v Kosmosi; the Ukrainians know his songs by heart. The writer is also the face of the Maidan; he speaks about Ukraine and argues that the situation in his homeland is caused by the need for changes and the fact that people are fed up with living in the post-Soviet reality.
However, the novel for which the award went to Zhadan – ‘Mesopotamia’ does not refer to politics. It is a multi-thread story of the inhabitants of Kharkiv. It is a place where people drink, fight, are overwhelmed by everyday life and enslaved by their own expectations, incapacities and ambitions. But, at the same time, they are also able to love, even though love described by Serhiy Zhadan does not always win and fails to change anything. Zhadan’s novel brilliantly reflects Ukrainian reality and the moods and feelings of the Ukrainians.
’For us, Ukrainians, it is important to feel support from Europe and be in the same cultural space at the moment. Believe me, this expression of solidarity with our country is much more important than any financial awards. It is a pleasure to know that Polish and Ukrainian culture are in such close contact with each other. I hope that prestigious literary awards will also be granted in Ukraine in the nearest future and that such an award will be received by a Polish writer,’ said Serhiy Zhadan to journalists after the Angelus Award gala. ‘For me, culture and art are not just entertainment and fun. I have always treated literature as a means for speaking about important things and drawing people’s attention to significant issues. Today Ukraine is experiencing a difficult period and many people in Ukraine need support and solidarity. I would consider it dishonest not to mention them all at the moment of receiving an international award. I believe that the audience of Capitol is not only interested in literature, but also wants to understand what is happening in Europe,’ he explained.
The Natalya Gorbanevskaya Readers Award went to the Romanian writer Lucian Dan Teodorovici. His novel ‘Matei Brunul’ in the Polish translation by Radosława Janowska-Lascăr (published by Amaltea/Oficyna Wydawnicza ATUT) received most votes in the poll carried out on the website of the Angelus Central European Literature Award.
At the moment of receiving the award from the Mayor of Wroclaw Rafał Dutkiewicz and the chairman of the Angelus jury Mykola Ryabchuk, Lucian Dan Teodorovici said: ‘It is a great honour for me to be one of the people nominated for Angelus. I am in the company of excellent authors whom I read and admire. The Readers Award is a special bonus, because the book is not addressed to the masses, but to each reader individually. I would like to thank the jury and the two ladies who have believed in me and supported my book: the publisher Ludmiła Anna Koza and the translator Radosława Janowska-Lascăr,’ added Teodorovici.
The Angelus Central European Literature Award is granted by the City of Wroclaw. The winner is selected by the jury consisting of the chairman Mykola Ryabchuk, Professor Stanisław Bereś, Piotr Kępiński, Ryszard Krynicki, Tomasz Łubieński, Krzysztof Masłoń, Justyna Sobolewska, Mirosław Spychalski and Professor Andrzej Zawada. The winner of the award receives a statuette designed by Ewa Rossano and the amount of 150,000 PLN. If the Angelus Award goes to a foreign writer, a separate award financed by the Angelus Silesius University of Applied Sciences in Wałbrzych (in the amount of 20,000 PLN) is also granted to the translator of his book.
