‘Am I lovely? Of course!’

With: Galina Rymbu, Vera Pavlova & Maria Stepanova

How do female writers respond to patriarchy and imagine themselves? Three powerful female poets, from different generations in Russia, will read from their work and discuss how they revolt against stereotypes, taboos and expectations around gender, the female body and sexuality in today’s Russia. The conversation will be moderated by the literary critic Sarah Posman.

Galina Rymbu (°1990, Siberia) lives and works in Saint Petersburg. She has published poems in The New Literary Observer, Air, Sho and the Translit series. Her first book, Moving Space of the Revolution, was published in 2014. Her poetry has been translated into English and has also appeared in The White Review, Music & Literature and Cosmonauts Avenue. She has written numerous essays about cinema, literature and sexuality in Séance, Colta and Milk and Honey.
Vera Pavlova (°1963, Moscow) studied at the Schnittke Music School, sang in a church choir and graduated as a music historian before making a breakthrough three years later with poems about repressed memories, concealed experiences and latent desires. She has also written four opera librettos and two cantatas. There is a lot of media interest surrounding Pavlova, even though she prefers to stay out of the spotlight. Her work has been translated into 19 languages.
Maria Stepanova (°1972, Moscow) is a poet, prose writer and journalist. She graduated from the Maxim Gorki Literature Institute and is one of the most striking figures in the cultural life of modern-day Russia. She is a poet, journalist and publisher and an important advocate of freedom of expression. Stepanova is the founder and editor-in-chief of Colta, the first independent, digital newspaper in Russia to make use of crowdfunding.