Curriculum

He is one of the most important contemporary Galician poets who belonged to the 80’s Generation. He began to study Law in Santiago and then he took a degree in Translation and Interpretation, specializing in legal and administrative language. Since the late 80’s he has worked as translator and coordinator of the Linguistic Standardization Office at Lugo County Council.

He wrote essay and fiction but he is mainly a poet. He belonged to the Novísimos Group, in a first poetry stage linked to social realism with books like Pranto irmán (1973), Verbas violentas na dor da conciencia (1974), which was awarded the Guimaraes Poetry Prize in Portugal in 1973, and Pranto para Castelao vivo e morto (1975), which was awarded Castelao Poetry Prize in Ourense.

Then he joined Cravo Fondo Group starting a second creative stage characterized by and a deeper epic spirit with titles like Antífona da redención (1977). This book was awarded Galicia Prize in 1977 and was finalist of the Spanish Critic Prize. Later on he published Herdo e alucinación en Fisterra, Akal, Madrid (1981).

With Os laberintos da xerfa (1985) he was awarded Celso Emilio Ferreiro Prize in Vigo in 1984, with a prologue by Manuel Cuña Novás and illustrations by Reimundo Patiño. He also wrote Os aposentos silenciados (1987), accesit of Esquío Prize in 1986; Celebración do gozo (1989, Esquío Prize and finalist of the National Literature Prize), Alba no muro (1990, Eusebio Lorenzo Baleirón Prize) and Antiga claridade (1992, Martín Codax Prize; Spanish Critic National Prize and finalist of the National Literature Prize).

In 1992, he published Torre para os días, a compilation of three of his books and a number of unpublished poems as well as a CD with a selection of poems read by himself. Three years later he was awarded Cidade de Betanzos Poetry Prize for Colección de oráculos (1995).

After a long poetic silence, he was awarded the prize of the 27th edition of Cidade de Ourense Poetry Prize with Calado testamento (2011) and Fervenzas Literarias Prize (USC) to the best book of a Galician writer in 2012.

His poetic work can be found in several Galician and Spanish anthologies as well as in the Brasilian Antología de poesía galega by Yara Frateschi Vieira (University of Campinas, 1996). His poems were translated into Spanish, Catalan, euskera, French, English and Russian.

As a narrator, he published Chegaron as chuvias (Pedrón de Ouro Prize in 1977) and Último soño escuro (Lugo County Council, 1996).

As an essayist, he published Trobar in 1998, about Galician medieval poetry; A pintura ultravisual de Reimundo Patiño (Ed. C.C. Conde Duque, Madrid, 1986); and was awarded the Essay Prize of the University of Santiago in 1974 for his study on the life of work of the Galician philosopher Johán Vicente Viqueira. Together with Darío Xohán Cabana, he wrote the anthology O mundo de Fiz: Escolma da poesía de Fiz Vergara Vilariño (Ed. Citania, 1995).

Xavier Rodríguez Barrio is considered to be one of the most known spoken-word poets in Galicia and has carried out a lot of audiovisual works for TV and radio. Together with Luciano Pérez, he created “O son da poesía” in 1994, a poetical and musical project that he presented all over Galicia, Madrid, Barcelona and Portugal, with texts of classic and contemporary Galician writers.