International Grand Prize for Poetry

7/8/2007 Internationaler Großer Preis für Poesie 2007

Tarek Eltayeb receives the International Grand Prize for Poetry at the International Festival Curtea des Arges in Rumania.

The International Festival “Curtea de Argeş Poetry Nights”, Romania was set up in 1997, belonging to the annual programs of the Foundation and Cultural Organization International Academy Orient-Occident (Curtea de Argeş, Romania).

This cultural institution has a private character, its initiators being the poet Dumitru M. Ion (President) and the poetess Carolina Ilica (Artistic Director). The International Festival “Curtea de Argeş Poetry Nights”, unique of its kind within the Central European countries has aimed and succeeded from the very beginning to become part of the international circuit of big festivals such as Struga (R. Macedonia), Las Palmas (Spain), Medellin (Colombia), Trois Rivières (Canada), etc.

The International Festival “Curtea de Argeş Poetry Nights” is conceived as an encomium to the world poetry nowadays, as a ceaseless poetical performance (by the Romanian traditional music, art exhibition and book releases, Romanian folk dances, visits to the fortresses and castles of Vlad Ţepeş (Dracula), trips in the Carpathian Mountains, etc.). The festival lasts 6 days and 6 nights.

On the occasion of the first edition (18th-22nd of September 1977) participated 40 poets of almost 15 countries; they were organized 4 poetry performances, over 50 recitals of poetry, 10 book releases, Romanian folklore performances, engraving exhibition of the master Marcel Chirnoagă, visits to the historical and cultural monuments from Argeş County, etc. The following prizes were awarded: 1. BALKAN GRAND PRIZE (for poetry): Georges Astalos (France) – for poetry work written in Romanian; 2. ORIENT-OCCIDENT GRAND PRIZE (for arts): Nikolai Stoianov (Bulgaria) – for his whole prose writings; 3. INTERNATIONAL GRAND PRIZE FOR POETRY: Mihail Rengiov (Republic of Macedonia) – for his whole poetical work.

Among the objectives of the Foundation and Cultural Organization International Academy “Orient-Occident” and of the International Festival “Curtea de Argeş Poetry Nights” there are:

  1. Promoting of mutual respect, the respect between peoples and cultures, promoting peace, non-violence, cultural, linguistic, ethnical, religious and age tolerance on the national, regional (Balkans, South and Central Europe) and international (East-West, North-South, Orient-Occident) plane;
  2. Getting men of letters from all cultural meridians together;
  3. Stimulating the Romanian contemporary creation;
  4. Increasing the interest of men of culture from abroad in the Romanian Culture and Civilization;
  5. Strengthening of the civil society interest for the Romanian and universal cultural values;
  6. Increasing the role of the particular / private initiatives in the preparation, organization and administration of the cultural act;
  7. Turning to good account of the cultural management experience of Romanian personalities;
  8. Integration of Romanian cultural values in the international circuit;
  9. Formation of participation spirit within individuals and collectivities to the knowledge and promotion of the Romanian and foreign cultural values.

Yearly, on the occasion of the festival, one ceremony of joining new members to the International Academy Orient-Occident takes place in Master Manole’s Hall (Royal / Episcopal Palace at Curtea de Argeş). The eleven edition, aniversary, of the International Festival „Curtea de Argeş Poetry Nights“ will take place between 18-24 July 2007, having as motto: 1001 Poems · The Sun and the Moon.