With a formal education in visual arts, I have translated many catalogues for museums and galleries, working on the 2010 Beuys catalogue for K20 in Düsseldorf for instance. Equally, with a formal education in visual arts, an additional qualification in language skills beckoned; in 2005 I acquired the demanding Institute of Linguists’ Diploma in Translation. I have since prepared other students for this exam. My non-fiction translation work has otherwise included music, theatre (the splendid Theater Anu), history, journalism and dance (Norbert Servos’ book on Pina Bausch), and ranges from academic essays to press material and performance texts.
I am above all interested in translating literature however: poetry, drama and prose fiction. You can read some of my literary translations on sites like no-mans-land.org. Actually there is no site like no-mans-land; it’s a unique showcase for German literature in English translation! I have recently translated extracts from books by Iris Hanika, Tino Hanekamp, Marlene Streeruwitz, Eleonore Frey and Götz Aly as well as short fiction by Feridun Zaimoglu and Antonio Fian. My current project is a translation of Brigitte Reimann's diaries.
Due to the lack of demand for literary translation into English I have become involved in moves to effect change. In March 2011 I was invited by the Goethe Institute London to join a group of northern European translators out of German on a reconnaissance mission to the Leipzig book fair. I also translate for Litrix.de and work with New Books in German, a project to raise awareness of German literature in the English-language publishing world; see this article on the Aufbauhaus, for instance, And if you like German books, you should read my colleague Katy’s blog.
Mehr Beispiele und Informationen zu meiner Arbeit als Übersetzer finden Sie im Verzeichnis des Übersetzercolloquiums, das am LCB, Berlins schönsten Treffpunkt für Literaten – angesiegelt ist.
Ich bin aktives Mitglied im VdÜ und unterstütze die Arbeit dieses Verbandes. Zudem besuche ich regelmäßig – auch als Stipendiat – das Europäische Übersetzer-Kollegium Straelen, ein wichtiges Projekt, das mir sehr am Herzen liegt.