Opening Event of the Cultural Season 2026

Translation and the Magnitude of Historical Figures: Homer, Lorca and Seferis

Cyprus House, London

Our 2026 cultural season opened with an evening that beautifully embodied the spirit of dialogue, scholarship, and cultural connection that defines the work of the Cultural Section of the Cyprus High Commission in London.

Hosted at Cyprus House and co-organised with partners in the academic community, the panel discussion “Translation and the Magnitude of Historical Figures: Homer, Lorca and Seferis” brought together leading voices in literature and translation for a conversation that crossed languages, centuries, and histories. The event unfolded in a hybrid format, linking our London audience with scholars joining online, turning the space into a meeting point between local presence and international thought.

We were deeply honoured to welcome Dr Gonda Van Steen (King’s College London), Koraes Chair of Modern Greek and Byzantine History, Language and Literature, as Chair of the panel. With warmth, clarity, and intellectual generosity, she guided the discussion, shaping an atmosphere that was both rigorous and inviting.

The panel featured four distinguished scholars whose work reflects the profound cultural and historical dimensions of translation:

Dimitra Kotoula, poet and translator, spoke about her creative engagement with Homer’s Iliad, focusing on how contemporary poetry enters into dialogue with ancient epic. Through her collection The Smile of Astyanax, she explored the vulnerability of texts in translation and the artistic courage required to approach canonical figures whose voices still resonate across millennia.

Andry Christofidou-Antoniadou, eminent Cypriot scholar, writer, and translator of Federico García Lorca, addressed the challenges of researching and translating a poet shaped by tragedy, censorship, and historical erasure. Her reflections revealed translation as an act of historical responsibility — a way of restoring memory, context, and human depth to literary figures whose lives were marked by political violence.

Jennifer Kellogg, literary translator of George Seferis, offered insight into the complexities of translating Book of Exercises II, highlighting the layered tone of the Nobel Prize–winning poet — his sombreness, irony, and satire. Her work demonstrated how translation must carry voice, rhythm, and personality, preserving not only meaning but the emotional and stylistic character of the original.

Afroditi Athanasopoulou, Associate Professor of Modern Greek Studies at the University of Cyprus, illuminated the political dimension of translation through Seferis’ collaboration with Rex Warner. Her presentation showed how translation shaped Seferis’ international reception, linking literature to diplomacy, post-war Anglo-Greek relations, and the historical context of Cyprus.

Together, the speakers revealed translation as a space where literature, history, politics, memory, and identity converge. From ancient epic to modern poetry, from personal voice to global recognition, the discussion reminded us that translation is a living cultural bridge — one that allows texts and histories to travel, transform, and remain relevant.

The evening concluded with informal conversation and a reception at Cyprus House, extending the spirit of exchange beyond the panel itself.

We warmly thank Dr Gonda Van Steen, Dimitra Kotoula, Andry Christofidou-Antoniadou, Jennifer Kellogg, and Afroditi Athanasopoulou for inaugurating our season with such depth and inspiration, and all those who joined us in person and online.

This event set the tone for a cultural year dedicated to dialogue, artistic excellence, and the enduring power of language to connect people across time and place.