The living arts Poets off to workshop

Press, 2 January 1979, Page 9

The living arts Poets off to workshop

A West Coast poet is one of two New Zealanders invited to Honolulu to take part in a workshop on “cross-cultural poetry” at the East-West Centre from January 10 to February 23. She is Keri Hulme, of Okarito. Ms Hulme has been writing full time since 1972, and has been awarded the Maori Trust Fund writing prize in English, a mini-Burns Fellowship at the University of t'tago. and the Katherine Mansfield B.N.Z. Short Story Prize. She is engaged in a variety of literary efforts, including a novel, a collection of short stories, poetry, and research for ; plav or film on the Omarama incident. 't he other New Zealandi vited to the centre is Donald Long, of Radio New Zealand. Wellington. Mr Long began publishing 10 years ago. His volumes of poetrv include “Borrow Fit” (1971) and “Poems from the Fifth Season” (1977), the latter being the first book of poetry by a New Zealand poet to be published in the United States. He is working on another collection, entitled ‘The Winter Fisherman — 100 poems.” Early next year an anthology edited by Mr Long and Witi Ihimaera, entitled “Into the World of Light — Contemporary Maori Writings

from New Zealand,” will be published. While in Hawaii, Mr Long will do research and script-writing for a documentary on contemporary Maori writing. „ The workshop, entitled “The interaction of cultures in model literature (poetry), ■' will study cross-cultural encounters, as expressed in poetry generated by the meetings of cultures, where the nature and destiny of character is shaped in some fashion bv the crosscultural encounter. The other 12 participants have been invited from throughout Asia, the Pacific and the United States. Al! will present papers, which will be published later.Both Ms Hulme and Mr Long have received fullyfunded awards from the East-West Centre which provide for return air fare to Honolulu, accomodation, a stipend for living and incidental expenses, health and accident insurance, and materials for workshop. The East-West Centre was established in Hawaii by the United States Con--ess in 1960. Its goal is “to promote better relations and understanding among thepeoples of Asia, the Pacific, and the United States through co-oper-ative study, research and training.”