Dimitris Lyacos

Dimitris Lyacos (Greek Δημήτρης Λυάκος; born 1966 in Athens ) is a Greek poet and playwright.

Life

Lyacos grew up in Athens and studied at the University of Jura. From 1988 to 1991 he lived in Venice, then moved to London, where he studied philosophy at University College (UCL ) and spent 13 years of his life. He currently lives in Berlin.

Work

1992 Lyacos began the trilogy " Poena damni ". The title refers to the punishment of the damned souls in hell, they can not see God. The trilogy is structured so that it begins at the end, and from there goes back to the beginning. The third part thus appeared as the first " O thanatos protos " ( " The first death " ), meanwhile, from the Greek in English, Spanish and Italian translation. A German edition is currently (10/ 2007) at the publishing house J.Frank in preparation. The second part of the trilogy " Nyctivoe " was published in 2001 in Greek and German, 2005 in English.

The trilogy seems to belong to a context of tragic poetry and epic drama. The style is also referred to as postmodern. Homer, Aeschylus, Dante and darker aspects of romantic poetry also show their influence as symbolism, expressionism, religious and philosophical ideas.

The first of the pieces, " Z213: Exit" portrays the outbreak of a young man from a guarded city and his journey through dreamlike, sometimes nightmarish countries. In the second book, " Nyctivoe ", a possessed by demons man trying to revive the corpse of his beloved, but what he fails and is finally united himself with her in the grave. The third book, " The first death ," begins with an exposed on a rocky island man and describes in further consequence of the struggle for survival and the disintegration of his body and the dissolution of his memory.

The work is difficult to categorize, since it exceeds the usual genre boundaries. Often it has a narrative form, by prose and poetry are mixed. In " Nyctivoe " changes Lyacos to a dramatic representation of character and situation, and a "hard", lyric poetry manner. He sets the resolution and, finally, the apotheosis of the corpse in " The first death " represents the possible differences between the perceived and the actual outside world are exploited here. Lyacos describes the irregular flow of an interior monologue, an event in the outside world and the impact on the mind of the protagonist. The body of the characters and the physical context of their life are displayed in impressive tightness. The man who flees from the city to a detailed and Kafkaesque world in a certain way, has the character of a private detective in LA from a thriller of the 1940s, which is apparently on the verge of an extraordinary adventure.

" Nyctivoe " begins with a, tormented by demons man from the Gospel of Mark, who lives in a cemetery and intersects with stones. He studied in the earth after the grave of Nyctivoe and projected in his urgent desire life in the body, which he has gescharrt from the tomb. Their return to life is impressively described.

In " The first death " of the mutilated body of a man is beaten against the rocks at the beginning. He is denied a private place, and he suffered constantly both physical as well as psychological humiliation.

Different artists have dealt with Lyacos ' Work: The Austrian painter Sylvie Proidl about presenting a series of images in Vienna in 2002 2004 an installation of the images Hauer Fritz Unegg and director Piers Burton - Page, as well as a video about " Nyctivoe " by Gudrun was. Bielz produced. The Myia Contemporary Dance Company will perform in the spring of 2006 " Nyctivoe " in Athens.

Bibliography

• Poena damni O Protos Thanatos. Odos Panos. Athens. In 1996.
• Poena damni The First Death. English edition. Translated by Shorsha Sullivan. Shoestring Press., 2000. ISBN 1-899549-42-0
• Poena damni The first death. German edition. Translated by Nina Maria Wanek. Publishing house J.Frank | Berlin, 2008.
• Poena damni Nyctivoe. Greek - German edition. Translated by Nina -Maria Jaklitsch. Press CTL. Hamburg.2001.
• Poena damni Nyctivoe. English edition. Translated by Shorsha Sullivan. Shoestring Press., 2005.