Svens Kuzmins
Biography
Sven Kuzmins (1985) is a Latvian writer, artist and actor. He mainly writes prose fiction, critical articles, and journalism, but also experiments with various forms of visual arts and literature. He is actively involved in other media projects, and is know to the wider public as one of the initiators and authors behind the NERTEN sketch theatre project. Pilsētas šamaņi / Urban Shamans (Dienas Grāmata, 2016) is Kuzmins' first collection of stories, complimented by his own graphic drawings. Recently the author published his first novel Hohma / Hokhmah (Dienas Grāmata, 2019), a story of a little Latvian town and its inhabitants. His works have been translated into English, Russian, Lithuanian, Estonian and Spanish and published in various printed and online platforms.
Bibliography
Brīvībene [My place on Freedom Street]. Riga: Orbīta, 2024.
Skaistums un nemiers [Beauty and restlessness]. Riga: Dienas Grāmata, 2023.
Dizažio [Disagio]. Riga: Dienas Grāmata, 2021.
Hohma [Hokhmah]. Riga: Dienas Grāmata, 2019.
Pilsētas Šamaņi [Urban Shamans]. Riga: Dienas Grāmata, 2016.
Articles
Jan M.Heller. A space of absurdity, femininity and trauma // Itvar, January 2025 [CZ]
Svens Kuzmins: Art is a conversation that is not limited by space and time // Przeglad Baltycki, November 2022 [PL]
About Disagio // Online magazine Satori, 2021 [LV]
About Hokhmah // Online magazine Satori, 2019 [LV]
Interview with Sven Kuzmins // Latvijas Sabiedriskie Mediji, 2019 [LV]
Santa Lauga, Zigfrīds Muktupāvels, interview with Sven Kuzmins // Kultūras Rondo, Radio LR1, 2016 [LV]
Interview about Urban Shamans // Radio NABA, literary segment Bron-Hīts, 2016 [LV]
Video conversation with Sven Kuzmins // Online magazine Satori, 2014 [LV]
Reviews
Dominik Wilczewski. It's bad, but it will get worse. Review of the book "Chochma" by Svens Kuzmins // Przeglad Baltycki, January 2023 [PL]
Svens Kuzmins. Chochma // Wydawnictwo Marpress, December 2022 [PL]
Katarzyna Denisiuk. Svens Kuzmins. Chocma // Naczytniku, November 2022 [PL]
Aivars Madris, Bieži uzdotie jautājumi par Hohmu, review of Hokhmah // Online magazine Satori, 2019 [LV]
Bārbala Simsone, Kuzmina kabala, review of Hokhmah // Diena.lv, 2019 [LV]
Guntis Berelis, Par pakārto Ļeņinu, veco žīdu viedumu un citām sakarīgām hohmām, review of Hokhmah // Online magazine Punctum, 2019 [LV]
West Camel, review of The Book of Riga // European Literature Network, 2018 [EN]
Bārbala Simsone, Piena un Heses kokteilis, review of Urban Shamans // Diena.lv, 2016 [LV]
Aivars Eipurs, Apziņas inženieri, review of Sven Kuzmin's Urban Shamans and Pauls Bankovskis' Mad Old Men // LA.lv, 2016 [LV]
Ieva Melgalve, Pārdomātā iracionalitāte, review of Urban Shamans // Online magazine Satori, 2016 [LV]
Guntis Berelis, Svena Kuzmina prozas recepte, review of Urban Shamans // Online magazine Punctum, 2016 [LV]
Pauls Bankovskis about Urban Shamans // Dienas Grāmata publishing homepage [LV]
Awards
2024, the Annual Latvian Literature Award for Beauty and disquiet
2022, the Annual Latvian Literature Award for Disagio
2021, shortlisted for European Union Prize for Literature for Hokhmah
2017, shortlisted for the Annual Latvian Literature Award for Urban Shamans
2016, Silver Ink-Pot, awarded by the International Writers' and Translators' House for Urban Shamans
2014, Prose Readings festival award for his story Zbigņevs un dēli/ Zbignev and Sons
Image author