Was born in exile in Barnaul (Russia) in 1960. Since 1962 lives in Vilnius. He graduated from Vilnius University, Faculty of Mathematics in 1983. In 1990-2000 he worked as a research fellow at the Institute of Culture and Art; in 1994-2002 was a director of international programs at The Lithuanian Writers Union (LWU) as well as a director of international poetry festival “Spring of Poetry”. From 1994 till 2008 he was a board member at LWU, since 1999 a member of Lithuanian PEN Club and from 1998 till 2002 – a board member at Baltic Writers‘ Council. From 2003 till 2015 – a chief editor of “Vilnius” magazine, which is also published in English (“Vilnius Review”) and Russian.

Eugenijus Ališanka published 7 poetry and 4 essay books. He also compiled 3 almanacs „Townsfolk“ in 1991, 1995 and 1999.

E. Ališanka translated and published 7 poetry books. He translates modern poetry of such poets as Wisława Szymborska, Carolyn Forshé, Dannie Abse, John Freeman, Uroš Zupan, Katerina Anghelaki-Rooke, Jerome Rothenberg, Desmond Egan, Jacek Podsiadło, Tomasz Róžycki, Bernardine Evaristo, Harvey L. Hix, Michael Schmidt, Bohdan Zadura, Pascale Petit, etc.

His books were published in USA, Russia, Germany, Sweden, Slovenia, Belgium and Bulgaria, poems translated to more than 20 languages.

In 1995 he participated in an international writing program in Ajova (USA), in 2000 – in a literary project “Literature’s Express Europe 2000”, as well as in more than 70 festivals and literary events all over Europe.

 

Awards

Z. Gėlė’s award for the best poetry debut, 1992

Magazine “Varpai“ („Bells“) award, 2001

Ministry of Culture award for the book “Return of Dionysus”, 2001

The Lithuanian Writers Union award for the poetry translations (Z. Herbert “Hesitant Nikė” and A. Debeljak “Imperfect Passion of Word“), 2002

“Spring of poetry” (Maironis) award, 2012

Jotvingių award, 2016

 

Poetry books

Equinox, Vilnius, Vaga, 1991

City of Ash, Vilnius, Regnum, 1995

Bone of God, Vilnius, Publishing House of the Lithuanian Writers Union, 1999

From Unwritten Histories, Vilnius, Vaga, 2002

Exemplum, Vilnius, Vaga, 2006

If, Vilnius, Publishing House of the Lithuanian Writers Union, 2011

Only Dotted Line of Spine, Vilnius, Publishing House of the Lithuanian Writers Union, 2016

 

Poetry books in other languages

City of Ash, Northwestern University Press, USA, 2000

Gudaben, Ariel Skrifter, Sweden, 2002

Božja kost’, Symposium, Russia, 2002

(Without a title) [chapbook in English], Vario burnos, Lithuania, 2002

(Without a title) [selected poems in Bulgarian and Lithuanian], Soros Centre for the Arts Foundation, Sofija, Bulgaria, 2002

Aus ungeschriebenen geschichten, DuMont, Germany, 2005

Iz nenapisanih zgodb, Društvo Apokaplipsa, Ljubljana, Slovenia, 2008

Uit het archief van ongeschreven brieven, Uitgeverij P, Leuven, Belgium, 2010

Exemplum, Zuhrkamp, Germany, 2011

From Unwritten Histories, Host Publications, USA, 2011

 

Essay books

An Imagining Man, Vilnius, Publishing House of the Lithuanian Writers Union, 1998

Return of Dionysus, Vilnius, Publishing House of the Lithuanian Writers Union, 2001

Street Between Two Churches, Vilnius, Tyto Alba

Shoe of Empedocles, Vilnius, Tyto Alba, 2016

 

Essay books in German

Die Rückehr des Dionysos, Athena Verlag, Germany, 2008

Eugenijus Ališanka and Aleš Debeljak, Baltische Adria, RanitzDialog 3, Edition Thanhäuser, Austria, 2010

Risse. Streifzüge und Fluchtpunkte, Berlin, KLAK Verlag, 2017

 

Poetry translations (books)

Kerry Shawn Keys. Moom tavern, Vaga, 1999

Zbigniew Herbert. Hesitant Nikė, Publishing House of the Lithuanian Writers Union, 2001

Aleš Debeljak. Imperfect Passion of Word, Publishing House of the Lithuanian Writers Union, 2001

Christian K. Narkewicz-Laine. Baltic Hours, Baltos lankos, 2007

Marcin Świetlicki. Not According to the Timetable, Versus aureus, 2007

Adam Zagajewski. Mask of Orpheus, Kronta, 2011

Tadeusz Róžewicz. Water in a cup, Apostrofa, 2017