Marta Jordan: "I was going to Vil·la Joana to translate a work and I translated two!"

The Polish Marta Jordan was a resident at the MUHBA Vil·la Joana last May. Translator from Spanish to Polish, she came to Barcelona to work on the translation of Juan Mayorga‘s work Últimas palabras de Copito de Nieve. “Since this year marks 20 years since the death of the albino gorilla and the publication of Mayorga’s work, it seemed to me that it was the right time to make this translation and spread it in Poland,” explains Jordan. And she didn’t waste time: in the three weeks of her stay, she practically completed not only the planned work, but also completed the translation of Las niñas no deberían jugar al fútbol, by Marta Buchaca. “I was going to Vil·la Joana to translate a work and I translated two!” exclaims Jordan, who defines her stay as “very fruitful” and the conditions offered by Vil·la Joana as “unbeatable”. She recommends, however, to those who wish to choose to do a literary residency there to “really consider their physical condition”, since “the access is quite steep and the distance to the nearest supermarket can be an obstacle for a person that is not used to walking.”

Her residency coincided with the Nit dels Museus (Museum Night), during which, she explains, she visited the Espai Subirachs gallery and was able to meet the daughter of the sculptor Josep Maria Subirachs. She also attended the International Poetry Festival –”I entered the Palau de la Música for the first time and I was impressed by its beauty”–, and at the Teatre Romea she saw the play La isla del aire, by Alejandro Palomas and starring Núria Espert. At La Beckett she watched the staging of Eufòria, by Lara Díez Quintanilla, and she would not want to miss L’Oreneta, at La Villarroel, by Guillem Clua, with Emma Vilarasau and Dafnis Balduz.

She also had time to visit El Born, Poblenou, the University of Barcelona and the Chocolate Museum, and above all the Zoo, which for so many years had Floquet de Neu as its symbol, the gorilla protagonist of the text she came to translate. However, if there is one thing she wants to highlight about her time in Barcelona, it is that she was finally able to meet theatre agent Marta Fluvià in person, after many years of exchanging e-mails.

At the moment, the Polish translator is giving the final touches to the translations she made during the residency, and already has other projects on the table, such as the translation of some plays by playwright Marta Barceló recommended by Fluvià.

More information about the residences, in this link.