Juliology is an extended poetic meditation on a mountain (Juliau) that is visible from the poet's house in the Ardèche region of south-central France. Focusing in particular on the flowering yellow English broom that covers the mountain in spring, Pesquès intermingles close observation with a philosophical reflection on the roles and potentials of language. Both lyrical and abstract, both grounded and rangy, the text takes us inward toward systems of representation at the same time that it directs us outward into the real world that they try, but perhaps never quite manage, to represent.
Nicolas Pesquès is the author of many volumes of poetry, six of which also focus on Juliau, the mountain he sees from his front porch in south-central France. He has also written widely on diverse artists, including Gilles Aillaud, Aurelie Nemours, Anne Deguelle, and Paul Wallach. Active for years in animated films, he produced versions of Tintin, Asterix, and others.
Cole Swensen is the author of twelve volumes of poetry and eleven of translation. Her translation of Jean Frémon's Ile des morts won the 2004 PEN USA Award in translation. She teaches at the Iowa Writers Workshop.
