International center for literary translators was founded in the year 2001 in Novi Sad. The activities of the Center are taking place in Sremski Karlovci (10 kilometers from Novi Sad and 60 kilometers from Belgrade). The Center has a regional character and focuses on translating works from one Balkan literature to the languages of other Balkan literatures as well as translating literary and scientific works from any of Balkan languages (Serbian, Croatian, Romanian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, Albanian, Greek), to other languages. The Center provides accomodation and activities for up to 2 translators at the same time from all over the world all year through. Because of the lack of support from the state institutions The Center has, ever since the openning, operated with limited strength. We have had three translators visiting the Center, one from Austria, one from Scotland and one from Germany and they all stayed for one month and worked on their translations. Also The Center hosted fifth regular half-year meeting of Halma network in april 2008. We have also been involved in local events in Serbia. For instance, we were the co-organizers of the announcment of translators prize „Branko Jelic“ together with French Cultural Centre in Belgrade.

Recently, the Ministry of Culture in Serbia and local administration showed interest in our work and we have just moved to the newly decorated space downtown Sremski Karlovci, prepared just for the work of the Center. This will allow us to work with full capacity in the forecoming period of time.

Literature in Flux Project





Literature in Flux
With the project “Literature in Flux” the HALMA network organizes a transnational cultural project with cultural NGOs from the Western Balkans and Turkey in cooperation with HALMA members. With the historical boat “Radetzky” as a temporary literary center we will embark on a literary journey from Ruse in Bulgaria to Vienna in Austria in October 2011. Writers, translators and journalists from at least 10 countries will participate and engage in dialogue about cultural exchange of the region. With the project we want to forge new relations with cultural actors in the Danube region and the Western Balkans with the aim of future cooperation and inclusion into the network. In the framework of the project we will prepare new literary translations of writers from the Western Balkans and Turkey in order to make their literature better known in the region and Europe and stimulate intercultural dialogue. Translation workshops in Vienna and Serbia aim at connecting writers and translators from the region and improvement of the quality of literary translations. In 2012 the second phase of the project “Literature in Flux” literary events in Croatia, Albania and Turkey where a publication will be presented and the first step of these partners into the network is made, in a first evaluation we will revisit the result of the first year.
The project is funded by the European Commission, the Austrian cultural institutes, Pro Helvetia.

Project partners:
Austria- Alte Schmiede Wien
Albania - Shoqata kulturore gjermano-shqiptare "Robert Schwartz
Bulgaria- International Elias Canetti Society
Croatia – Udruga Kurs
Hungary - Magyar Fordítóház Alapítvány
Romania- Culture Port Cetate
Serbia- International Center for Literary translators
Turkey - Kültürlerarasi Egitim ve Arastirma Dernegi

Projectcoordinator:
HALMA – the European network of literary centers
Laura Seifert
Karl-Kunger-Str. 55, D-12435 Berlin
Phone: 0049-30-97882578 | mail@halma-network.eu
www.halma-network.eu