No goodbyes
Luis González SerranoLuis González Serrano developed a tri-lingual (Spanish, English and Nahuat) long form poetry work called ‘No goodbyes’, that draws from his lived experience He displayed the poetry work in an old photo album as an interactive piece that audiences can flick through. He also delivered a live poetry performance on the launch day.
“This photo album contains a 6-part poem based on my family’s comings and goings between El Salvador and Melbourne from the late 80s to now. Mine was among the many families of Salvadorians who came to Australia on a humanitarian visa, fleeing a decade-long civil war, arriving at the Entreprise Migrant Hostel and making Springvale home. Like many others, my parents decided to return to El Salvador when the war ended in 1992 but made several trips back and forth since, trying to settle again each time. ‘No goodbyes’ has been cut into sections to fit the standard size of a photograph album to fill a void, as few family photos have survived from our early years in Australia. You are welcome to flick through the pages and read the poem in its entirety or as individual sections.”- Luis González Serrano
Luis González Serrano is a Melbourne poet born in El Salvador who came to Australia in 1988 as a refugee. In 2003 he founded, along with two mates, Salt-lick Quarterly, a well regarded poetry journal. In 2005 he published a book, Cities with Moveable Parts (NSW Poets Union Publications). He has been involved in the Melbourne poetry scene since 2002, and directly or indirectly with the Melbourne Overload Poetry Festival, of which he was Artistic Director between 2011 and 2012.