- an exhibition on Melitta Urbancic

On Saturday the 8th of March an exhibition on writer, sculptor and actress Melitta Urbanic (1902-1984) was opened in the National and University Library of Iceland. Her book of poetry, Frá hjara veraldar /Vom Rand der Welt (From the edge of the world), a dual language publication, was published simultaneously by The Vigdís Finnbogadóttir Institute of Foreign Languages and The University of Iceland Press. Sölvi Björn Sigurðsson translates the poems and Gauti Kristmannsson writes an epilogue. Melitta wrote the poems, that are now published for the first time,  in  the years 1939-1943 about her experience being in exile in Iceland. This is a collaborativce project between The Vigdís Finnbogadóttir Institute of Foreign Languages, National and University Library of Iceland and Reykjavík UNESCO City of Literature along with Melitta´s descendants. The Austrian embassy in Copenhagen supports the exhibition financially.

Melitta Urbancic with a book, around 1930.

Melitta and Victor Urbancic, around 1930.

Melitta Urbancic. Foto Trude Fleischmann.

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