António Carlos Cortez’s poetry arises from lyrical meditation, from the ‘art of spirit cultivation’, or from the juxtaposition of images cut out from mythical matters, from the love of loss. Metaphor could perhaps be the metaphysical name given, in his writing, to time and memory. In the desert of experience, duality is made of an essential instability: a shattered mirror between shadow and sun. This instability could be the matter-like component of a somehow subvertedly classical writing which wonders about the limits of limitlessness.

Ana Marques Gastão

António Carlos Cortez lives in Lisbon where he teaches Portuguese Language and Literature. He is also a literary critic for newspapers and literary magazines.

Poetry books since: Um Barco no Rio (2002), A Sombra no Limite (2004), À Flor da Pele (2008), Depois de Dezembro (2010), O nome negro (2013), Animais feridos (2016), A dor concreta (2016), Skin Deep (2021), Diamante (2021).