Francesc Bombí-Vilaseca (Barcelona, 1975) has been writing poems for some time and is a regular at poetry recitals, where, with a refined style, he says his verses with conviction and seriousness. But it has not been until now that a collection of his poems has seen the light of day in a book, Febre amb gel (Fonoll), where on each page we find the same poem, written in three languages: English, Spanish and Catalan. But the versions are not exact. Adrià Pujol Cruells, in the prologue, compares them to the Goldberg Variations. For sure, the reader of La Vanguardia already knows Bombí-Vilaseca for his work as a cultural editor, or maybe he has seen him playing the electric guitar in some den. But the poet's soul always appears at the bottom of his clear eyes.
How come I've never published a book yet?
In the late nineties, which is when I wrote the most, I participated in many poetry recitals. Since my poems were already reaching the public, I had no need to publish them. Still, I kept closing some books, like this one.
Does it mean that his poetry is to be said, just as a play is to be performed, and that it is published in a book is secondary?
There are yes and there are no. What I have said is contradicted by this book, because they are poems that I don't think I have ever recited. They are written in three languages, which are best interpreted when read in the context of a page.
But they are not exact translations.
It is rather a game between the three versions, sometimes more reliable, sometimes more wild.
Why three languages?
It came out like this. On May 11, 2000, I went to an exhibition by the Japanese artist Atsuko Arai about the disappearance of the Raval houses, through engravings of doors and windows that reproduced those buildings that had disappeared. I got home and a poem came out, which I translated into the other two languages, and a game appeared that sent me into a kind of creative ecstasy for a month and a half. I wrote everything in a notebook with a green marker.
What is the language of the first poem?
I can't remember the first time. The next ones he wrote in English, then in Spanish and later in Catalan. Over the years, I've reread them, taken them out, rewritten them...
Does this command respond to any reason?
There was no will for anything. I listened to a lot of music in English, especially Anglo-Saxon rock. As for Spanish, in this newspaper at that time we only wrote in Spanish. And Catalan is my language of poetry.
The result is not three versions, but the sum of the three poems make a new one.
It's like the Holy Trinity. In fact, they are layers of identity, because part of my education and my stimuli are in English and Spanish. It is a representation of identity, at least the one of 23 years ago.
Does each language have a different nuance?
not very well But it is true that there are poems that represent me more in the English part, others in Spanish and others in Catalan.
He has combined deeper poems with lighter ones.
There are more intense ones and others with more of a sense of humor, yes. I like the book precisely because of this combination: it is intense and funny at the same time. And what surprised me is that I talk a lot about God.
Are you a believer?
No, I'm a recalcitrant atheist. But the idea of God interests me a lot and, as an atheist, I miss it.
Has it had other periods of transit like that of the year 2000?
So long, no. It has usually happened to me with a poem, but not with a whole book.
Now that you've published your first book of poems, are there more to come?
I have two or three books that are more or less closed and that I hope to publish, yes.
