Lev Rubinshtein
Biography
Born in 1947 in Moscow, Lev Rubinstein worked as a librarian while he took part in the Russian literary underground, a job that at least partly inspired his use of the index card as poetic medium. Rubinstein's central importance to the Russian avant-garde, and his artistic affinities with international experimental poetry, make him an essential figure in both Russian and world poetry; that he has been translated into German, French, Swedish, Polish, and English indicates the already-existing regard for his achievements. Rubinstein's poetic texts, which were first published in the West in the 1970s, ten years earlier than in Russia, are written on a series of index cards, often mirroring or distorting the various discourses of language.
A laureate of the prestigious Andrei Bely Prize, Rubinstein is an accomplished poet with a sharp eye for unusual detail. His innovative use of 'found poetry' and 'poems on index cards' were refreshing and unique in the surge of 'new literature' after the fall of Communism. He is also a keen essayist; his columns for publications such as Itogi, Esquire and grani.ru are extremely popular and his recent book of collected essays Zeitgeists, has earned well-deserved praise from critics and readers alike.
Books /selected/
Духи времени / Scents of time (2007)
Домашнее музицирование / Domestic music-making (2000)
Случаи из языка / The Language (1998)
Дружеские обращения / Friendly treatment (1997)
In Translation
in English
Catalogue of Comedic Novelties (2003)
Here I Am: Performance Poems (2002)
Prizes and awards
2003 - Liberty Award
1999 - Andrei Bely Prize