LIBERA Antoni

Born on 19 April 1949 in Warsaw; son of the literary historian and University of Warsaw (UW) professor Zdzisław Libin-Libera, and the teacher of Latin and Ancient history Helena, née Żmijewska. He spent his childhood in Warsaw. He attended the Karol Szymanowski Specialist Music Primary School and the José Marti Grammar School (No. XXII) in Warsaw, completing his advanced secondary education in 1967. He then studied Polish philology at UW, graduating with a master's degree in 1972. He made his debut in 1969 with an article on Jerzy Andrzejewski's Miazga (The Pulp), Czy miazga tylko zostanie, czy diament? (Will only pulp remain, or a diamond?), which was published in the weekly "Współczesność" (no. 19). In 1972, he published excerpts of Samuel Beckett's prose (in Polish as Jak jest [Comment c'est]; Dzyń [Bing/Ping]; Wyludniacz [Le Dépeupleur/ The Lost Ones], in the literary monthly "Twórczość" (no. 5). This marked the beginning of his work as a translator and commentator on Beckett's work. He also occasionally wrote research on Beckett and directed his works for the stage. He became a regular contributor to "Twórczość", publishing numerous articles, reviews and translations there between 1971 and 1982. He was involved in the political opposition to communism, with his activities including editing the first issues of "Biuletyn Informacyjny KOR", the information bulletin of the Workers' Defence Committee (KOR), which was published outside the reach of official censorship. He occasionally contributed to the Paris-based journal "Kultura" (also using the names: Andrzej Rolicz, Jerzy Rolicz and Jerzy Rybak). He made his debut as a theatre director in 1980 at the Nowy Theatre in Poznan, directing Samuel Beckett's plays Nie ja (Not I) and Tamtym razem (That Time). In subsequent years he directed Beckett's plays in various Polish cities and for Polish Television. He was awarded a doctoral degree in 1984 from the Institute of Literary Research of the Polish Academy of Sciences (IBL PAN) for his dissertation Kosmologia Becketta. Studia o wybranych dramatach i tekstach prozą (Beckett's Cosmology: Studies of selected dramas and prose texts), which was supervised by Prof. Alina Brodzka. That year he joined the Association of Polish Translators (STP) and the US-American Samuel Beckett Society. Between 1988 and 1993, he was co-editor of the bimonthly "Puls", which was published in London until 1990 (he also used the name: Jakub Braun). Writing for the Paris-based "Zeszyty Literackie" and London-based "Aneks" he used the pseudonym Andrzej Lieder. In 1989, he won the STP special prize for his translation of Beckett's dramas, published in Polish as Dzieła dramatyczne. He joined the Polish Writers' Association (SPP) the same year. Between 1989 and 1991, he directed Beckett's plays in England (Leicester and London) and in Ireland (Dublin). From 1991 to 1993, he was editor at the publishing house Puls Publications, which was based in London. He remained active as a theatre director, both in Poland and abroad, with his productions also staged at international theatre festivals. He was a fellow of the International Writing Program at the University of Iowa, USA, in 1993. Between 1996 and 2001, he deputized as literary director of the Dramatyczny Theatre in Warsaw. He published the novel Madame in 1998, winning numerous awards. He became a member of the Polish PEN Club in 1999. Between 2001 and 2003 he, along with Agata Bielik-Robson, published the regular column Rozmowy warszawskie (Warsaw Conversations) in the periodical "Przegląd Polityczny". He was appointed to the Programme Council at Zachęta – National Gallery of Art in 2013. In 2000, he became a regular contributor to the art quarterly "Kwartalnik Artystyczny" and in 2006 to the literary journal "Tekstualia". In 2017, he ran a regular seminar series organized by the philosophical yearbook "Teologia Polityczna" titled Libera tłumaczy klasyków (Libera translates the Classics). In 2017, he was appointed to the jury of the Two Theatres (Dwa Teatry) festival and of the Daedalus' Wings Literary Prize (Skrzydła Dedala). He has received numerous awards and honours, including the Ring of the Wise Men of Bethlehem (Pierścień Mędrców Betlejemskich), which is awarded by the Pastoral Ministry of Creative Milieu of the Archdiocese of Poznan (Duszpasterstwo Środowisk Twórczych Archidiecezji Poznańskiej; 2005); the Prize of the Minister of Culture and National Heritage (MKiDN) in 2017; and the 2018 President Lech Kaczyński Award (2018). He received the Silver (2010) and Gold (2017) Medal for Merit to Culture – Gloria Artis, the Officer's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta in 2011 and the French L’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres in 2015. He married the English studies graduate and translator Elżbieta Jasińska in 1984; they have two children, Jan Samuel (b. 1986) and Anna (b. 1989). He lives in Warsaw.