2016 - Louis-Philippe Dalembert

In 1982 Dalembert published his first collection of poetry in Port-au-Prince, Évangile pour les miens (‘Gospel for my beloved ones'). He left for France in 1986 to pursue his studies. The following year he received the Grand Prix de poésie of the city of Angers for his collection Et le soleil se souvient (‘And the sun recalls'). He obtained his degree from the École supérieure de journalisme de Paris before completing his doctorate at the University of Paris III-Sorbonne nouvelle.

In 2006 he released his novel Les Dieux voyagent la nuit (‘The Gods travel by night', Éditions du Rocher). Two years later, the author received, for this novel, the Casa de las Américas Prize. The author has won many other awards throughout his career, including the Prix RFO du Livre, and he was also made a Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres in 2010. His books have been translated into many languages (Italian, Spanish, etc.).

Louis-Philippe Dalembert is a constant traveller, to the extent that he is often called a ‘wanderer' or ‘vagabond'. In fact, vagabondage features prominently in his work, as do childhood and religion. The author believes that writing through the eyes of a child makes it possible to manipulate time, in a sense.

During his Brussels residency, the author will work on the completion of a novel due to be published by Mercure de France between January and March 2017.