Nicole Brossard  

Nicole Brossard, O.C. is a leading French-Canadian formalist poet and novelist. Her work is known for exploration of feminist themes and for challenging masculine-oriented language and points of view in French literature. She lives in Outremont, a suburb of Montreal, Canada and attended Collège Marguerite Bourgeoys and the Université de Montréal. Brossard’s collection L'Echo bouge beau marked a break in the evolution of her poetry that included an open and active participation in many literary and cultural events, including poetry recitals. In 1975, she participated in a meeting of writers on women, after which she began to take an activist role in the Feminist movement, and to write poetry with a more personal and subjective tone. Her writing includes sensual, aesthetic and feminist political content. Brossard co-founded a feminist newspaper, Les têtes de pioches, with France Théoret. Shortly after, she also wrote a play "Le nef des sorcières" (first performed in 1976). In 1982, she founded a publishing house: L'Intégrale éditrice and two year later, her poetry collection, "Double Impression," won the 1984 Governor General's Award. In April 2019, Brossard was announced as the 2019 Griffin Lifetime Recognition Award recipient. (01/20)