Georgian-American writer and actor

David Dephy (Georgian: დავით დეფი, born June 21, 1968), also known as David Dephy Gogibedashvili, is a Georgian/American poet, novelist, essayist, performer, multimedia artist and painter, and the founder of the first Georgian poetic order Samkauly. He is the author of ten novels and 12 collections of verse. His short story "Before The End" was chosen for inclusion in the anthology Best European Fiction 2012, edited by Aleksandar Hemon and prefaced by Nicole Krauss, and published in the U.S. by Dalkey Archive Press.

Dephy's first book-length work in English, the 2014 novel All the World's Mysteries, is forthcoming in Spring 2019 from MadHat Press with a translation from the Georgian by Adham Smart.

Contents

• 1 Biography
• 2 Major publications
• 3 Filmography
• 4 References
• 5 External links

Biography

Dephy was born in Tbilisi. He earned his undergraduate degree in 1992 from the Faculty of Architecture at the Tbilisi State Academy of Fine Arts. He began his career working in print media, radio, and television, where he created the program მზეRA (Mze-Ra) for the Georgian television station Meore Archi. From 1995 to 2000 he worked in cinema, collaborating with internationally famous film directors Otar Ioseliani and Nana Jorjadze, among others.

During the Russian invasion of Georgia in 2008, Dephy joined the army of volunteers and set up a headquarters of civil solidarity under his famous slogan "Stop Russia."

In 2010-2011 Dephy was an artist-in-residence at the writers’ society Ledig House in Ghent, New York. In 2011 his short story "Before the End" was selected for inclusion in Dalkey Archive Press's Best European Fiction series, as well as in Dalkey's anthology Contemporary Georgian Fiction, edited and translated by Elizabeth Heighway. That same year Dephy was invited to participate in the PEN World Voices Festival in New York City, where he presented a live poetry event en*led "The Second Skin" with Laurie Anderson, Yusef Komunyakaa and Salman Rushdie at the Unterberg Poetry Center, 92nd St Y.

Dephy's works have been published and anthologized in the U.S., UK, Mexico, Germany, Brazil. India, Ukraine, Georgia, by the many literary magazines, journals, and publishing houses. From 2015-2017 he served as the Creative Consultant for Poetry & Prose at the University of Georgia. In 2017 he was chosen as an Amb*ador of Poetry by Julius Meinl, and his live performance of The Poet King – The Easter Verses at the Peace Cathedral of Georgia and the Evangelical-Baptist Church of Georgia led to his poetry officially being included in the Divine Liturgies. Dephy was collaborating with Georgian rock bands Lady *, The Sanda and *spouses on a bilingual English/Georgian multimedia projects.

He is an author of fifteen books of poetry, eight novels and three audio albums of poetry in Georgian language. His first book-length works in English, a poetry Eastern Star, have been published in USA on October 28, 2020 from Adelaide Books New York, also his book-length work in English, a poetry - written with Joshua Corwin - A Double Meaning, will be published in July 2022 by Adelaide Books New York as well.

He is a founder of poetic multimedia project Poetry Orchestra, which is named as "A Triumphant", "A Revolutionary" and "An Innovation in the World of Poetry" by Cultural Daily Los Angeles. An active collaborator with Saphileaum and Irakli Gabriel.

He lives and works in New York.

Prizes won: The 1st Place Winner of The Artists Forum Poetry Award in New York 2021. The Finalist and Shortlist Winner Nominee of the Adelaide Literary Awards New York for the category of Best Poem. 2020/2021. USA. A Winner of the Finalist Award in the 2020 Best Book Award National Contest by American Book Fest. USA. A Winner of the 2019 Spillwords Press Poetry American Award as June’s Publication of the Month. Spillwords Press. New York, USA. The Favorite Poem, 2020 by Dissonance Magazine. Kent, UK. The Finalist of the Adelaide Literary Award Anthology, 2019 for the category of Best Poem. Adelaide Books/Adelaide Magazine. New York, USA. The Editor's Choice Poem 2019 by Vita Brevis Magazine. New York, USA. Has been nominated as an Author of The Year/Month by Spillwords Press, four-time in a row, 2019/2020. New York, USA. Best European Fiction 2012, edited by Aleksandar Hemon and prefaced by Nicole Krauss, Dalkey Archive Press. Chicago, USA.

Named as A Literature Luminary by Bowery Poetry, The Stellar Poet by Voices of Poetry, The Incomparable Poet by Statorec, The Brilliant Grace by Headline Poetry & Press and An Extremely Unique Poetic Voice by Cultural Daily.

Major publications

• 1994: Dead Time, essays
• 1995: The Grotesque, stories
• 1996: Stories and Conceptions, stories & essays
• 2003: The December Talisman, a novel
• 2003: Expecting Miracles At Dawn, a novel
• 2003: Emerald and Sapphire, poems
• 2003: Words Words Words, dialogues
• 2003: Let My Twin Find Me, a novel
• 2004: The Ravage Trilogy: And, There, and Heaven, poems
• 2007: Samkauly, poems
• 2008: Demna Gedevanischvili, a novel
• 2009: Shinings, poems
• 2010: Da Iq Tsa, poems
• 2010: DNA Symphony, poems
• 2010:The Gardens and the Pandemonium, a novel
• 2011: Sevdya, poems
• 2012: "Before the End", Contemporary Georgian Fiction and Best European Fiction 2012; English language translation by Elizabeth Heighway
• 2012: Demna, a novel
• 2012: We All Will Get Out From Here Alive, poems
• 2014: All the World’s Mysteries, a novel
• 2014: The Society of the End and the Beginning, a novel
• 2014: God Is Among You, poems
• 2015: The Easter Verses, poems
• 2015: Absolute New York, poems
• 2016: The Poet King, a poem
• 2016: Crowned, a novel
• 2018: All the World's Mysteries, a novel; English language translation by Adham Smart
• 2018: The Same Fable, poems
• 2020: Eastern Star, poems
• 2022: A Double Meaning, a poem

Filmography

• 1996: Winner of the Grand Prix at the Venice Film Festival
• 1996: Brigands, Chapitre VII | Director Otar Ioseliani
• 2000: 27 Missing Kisses | Director: Nana Jorjadze
• 2002: Drongo | Director: Zinovi Roizman
• 2004: Delirium | Director: Tornike Bziava

References

• Poetry Orchestra - Poetic Experience Perfected - 5 star review about David Dephy's project Poetry Orchestra by John Dennis in Cultural Daily Magazine, California, USA
• Poets on Craft by Cultural Daily - David Dephy and Wayne Miller
• Shine On Eastern Star - 5 star review about Eastern Star by Linda Galbraith in Cultural Daily Magazine, California, USA
• American poets about David Dephy
• Adelaide Books USA New York David Dephy
• Adelaide Magazine USA New York David Dephy

External links

• Adelaide Books USA New York David Dephy
• Stanford University USA California David Dephy
• Columbia University USA New York David Dephy
• Artistic Freedom Initiative USA New York David Dephy
• The Independent UK About David Dephy's The Chair