This year’s Compass Award competition was dedicated to the poetry of Arseny Tarkovsky (1907-89). Though he began  writing in the 1920s, Tarkovsky's first collection, Before the Snow, did not appear until 1962, when it was praised by Anna Akhmatova as "an unexpected and precious present to the reader." Indeed, Tarkovsky was an essential bridge between the Silver Age and the generation of the Thaw. The rhythms of his verse have a mesmerizing quality. His work is both profoundly spiritual and earthy in its detail and texture. Tarkovsky's reputation among Russian poets and readers is secure, but he is only now becoming better known in the English speaking world, which has long held his son, filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky, in high esteem.  We hope that this contest will aid in this process of discovery for English readers. After all, like the previous year's Compass poet, his friend Maria Petrovykh, Tarkovsky was himself an accomplished translator.

We received entries from various geographic regions around the world and from translators with different backgrounds. Their ages ranged from the early twenties to the early nineties. There was a short list selected by mid-2014 and then the winners were announced in October 2014.

THE WINNERS OF THE 2014 COMPASS AWARD ARE

First prize ("The Compass” and $300):
In autumn's final week's, on the decline…
Winner: Laurence Bogoslaw (Minnesota)

Second prize ($150):
The Wind
Winner: Nora Krouk (Australia)

Third prize ($100):
Forgive me, Vincent. In the very end...
Winner: Igor Mazin (Virginia)

Honorable Mention (shared):
A Poet from Early This Century
Eugene Serebryany (Massachusetts)

Like Forty Years So Long Ago
Misha Semenov (New Jersey)

The Compass Award-2014 Ceremony and Reading will take place at Poets House in New York, on Saturday, January 17, 2015, at 4 PM.
The poet for the 2015 contest will be announced at the Award Ceremony.

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