Feliu Formosa (Sabadell, Vallès Occidental, 1934) is a poet, translator, playwright, essayist, actor and theatre director. He has translated more than sixty works of poetry, novels and theatre from the German and has also adapted many plays. He has published the first part of his diary El present vulnerable. Diaris I (1973- 1978) (The Vulnerable Present. Diaries I (1973 – 1978)) and, in 1980, his own poetic works and translations appeared in Si tot és dintre (If Everything is Within). He started to publish poetry again with Semblança (1986) and has continued to write poetry ever since.

In 2002, he was awarded the National Culture Prize for Theatre in recognition of his contribution to theatre in Catalonia. After this he worked on bringing together his poetic work in the volume entitled Darrere el vidre. Poesia 1972-2002 (Behind the Glass. Poetry 1972 – 2002), which was published by Edicions 62/Empúries in 2004. Next came a further volume of his diaries, A contratemps (Off Beat, Perifèric Edicions, 2005), which once again has situated Feliu Formosa among the most outstanding prose writers in Catalan literature. Moreover, in homage to his work as an actor, playwright and theatre translator, the book Feliu Formosa, teatre i paraula (Feliu Formosa, Theatre and Word), edited by Laura Fernández, was published in 2003.

Notable among the prizes he has received for his work are the Creu de Sant Jordi (Saint George Cross), which was awarded by the Generalitat (Government) of Catalonia in 1988, the Carles Riba Prize, the City of Barcelona Prize, the Theatre Institute Award of Honour, and the Institute of Catalan Letters Prize for Children’s and Young People’s Literature. Moreover, apart from his own work, Feliu Formosa’s intensive work as a literary translator has also been awarded numerous prizes, among them the National Prize for Translation, which is offered by the Ministry of Culture. He is a member of the Associació d’Escriptors en Llengua Catalana (Association of Catalan Language Writers) and has also been Dean of the Institute of Catalan Letters.



Documentation: Lena Paüls.
Updating of web page: Xulio Ricardo Trigo.
Translation: Juile Wark.
Photographs: AELC files.