A poet, researcher, translator
Prof. Kacper Bartczak is a poet, literary scholar, translator and a researcher of American literature at the Faculty of Philology, where he heads the Department of North American Literature and Culture. He has published numerous books and articles on authors such as Emily Dickinson, Wallace Stevens, John Ashbery and Peter Gizzi. He is also the author of the acclaimed monograph "In Search of Communication and Community: The Poetry of John Ashbery" and the collection of essays "Świat nie scalony," which received the annual award from the monthly "Literatura na Świecie."
In parallel, Prof. Bartczak has been actively pursuing his poetic career – he is an author of several volumes of poetry, two of which have been shortlisted for major Polish literary awards. He was honoured with the Silesius Award for lifetime achievement in 2025.
What is VERSeFest?
VERSeFest is one of the most important poetry events in Canada. The festival is organised by VERSe Ottawa, a non-profit organisation that has been bringing together poetry communities and actively promoting poetry in the Capital Region for years.
VERSeFest has presented poetry in both English and French since 2011. Winners of major literary awards in Canada and the world have performed on the festival stages, and the festival is now considered one of the largest and most recognisable poetry events of its kind in the country.
