micha cárdenas gives a reading of Esdras Parra’s Este suelo secreto (To be human once more), translated from Spanish into English by Jamie Berrout in 2016. A book of poetry that evokes Parra’s thoughts and feelings experiencing life as a trans woman, Este suelo secreto was originally published in 1995.
cárdenas will also read a selection of Parra’s poems in Spanish as well as excerpts from
Pregnancy (2015), her own series of poems that is on view in the current exhibition
Trans Hirstory in 99 Objects.
Following the reading, Chris E. Vargas, exhibition curator and executive director of the Museum of Transgender Hirstory & Art will lead a conversation about the exhibition.
Esdras Parra (1939-2004) is a Venezuelan trans woman poet, essayist, and translator, whose works received critical acclaim. Parra was a founding member and editor of the magazine Imagén, and the author of El insurgente (1967), Por el norte el mar de las Antillas (1968), Juego limpio (1968) Antigüedad del frío (2001), and Aún no (2004).
micha cárdenas, assistant professor of Interdisciplinary Arts & Sciences and Interactive Media Design, directs the
Poetic Operations Collaborative, a design research lab at the University of Washington Bothell applying technological creativity to advance social justice.
