Meet David Dephy | Poet

We had the good fortune of connecting with David Dephy and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi David, what role has risk played in your life or career?
If you are a poet, you should know that you belong to the high-risk group. It means that we are the high-risk individuals, high-risk persons, or high-risk population on the planet, and we still believe that poet’s voice is the voice of the world, poet’s voice always has a message. Leaving in exile in New York already contains all the combination of risk factors.

I was exiled from my native country of Georgia in 2017 and was granted political asylum in the USA immediately and indefinitely. My family, beloved wife and 9-year-old son joined me in the U.S. after 6 years of exile in 2023. As a poet at risk, I was protected by the American organizations such as: Artistic Freedom Initiative and PEN America who assisted me in political asylum and family reunion process.

As a tri-lingual Georgian / American award-winning poet and novelist, multimedia artist, who lives and works in New York City I lead two artistic projects: Poetry Orchestra and American Poetry Intersection, and I try my best to win, in all honesty everyone is here to win, which makes life fun for us all. I always believed that poet is already a winner. I think the nature of risk requires some sort of spiritual elegance. That’s what it’s all about.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
Well, during the Russian invasion of Georgia in 2008, I joined with other volunteers to set up a headquarters of civil solidarity under my now-infamous slogan “Stop Russia” and opposed Russia’s military aggression with my protest meetings, with my voice, my works.

After election in 2012 the pro-Russian party Georgian Dream led by Russian oligarch, came to the power. I continued my vocal protest and finally was forced to leave country, was exiled in 2017 and was granted political asylum in the USA immediately and indefinitely.

My family, wife and nine-year-old son joined me in America in 2023, six years after I was exiled from Georgia and granted political asylum in the U.S.

I was invited by the Columbia University in the City of New York as a featured guest poet alongside a Nobel Prize winner novelist Orhan Pamuk in 2017. I am a former artist-in-residence at Art Omi in Hudson, New York. I participated in the PEN World Voices Festival in New York City, where I presented a live poetry event entitled The Second Skin with Laurie Anderson, Yusef Komunyakaa and Salman Rushdie at 92Y.

Today I am widely published in the USA and even named as a Poet-in-Residence for Brownstone Poets 2024 – 2025.

My work, “A Sense of Purpose,” is included in Polaris Trilogy by Brick Streets Poetry and is sent to the Moon by NASA, The Lunar Codex, in 2024, as a representative of the artistic voice of mankind. This project was featured in The New York Times and other worldwide media articles such as Guardian, Le Figaro, USA ART Magazine in 2023-2024.

I am a stipend recipient and a featured poet at Walt Whitman Birthplace Association in New York, 2023. I hold a master’s degree in fine art recognized as an Educational Equivalent in the United States of America as a master’s degree in fine art by the Globe Language New York City.

Some of my poems have been included in the anthologies and magazines issued by the American universities such as: Stanford University, University of Pittsburg, California State University St. Bernardino, the University of Wisconsin, the University of Nebraska and the University of Texas. Also, I was invited by the Cornel University as a featured guest poet for the Onward Series in April 2024. In general, my works have been published and anthologized in the USA, UK and all over the world.

I received my first Pushcart Prize nomination in the category of Poetry from Brownstone Poets in 2023, thanks to brave and beautiful Patricia Carragon who leads the Brownstone Poets, she nominated my work. She is a visionary poet.

One of my poetry books A Double Meaning which I wrote in collaboration with brilliant Joshua Corwin was selected as a Finalist of the American Book Fest 2023 in category of Poetry.

I was granted The Nelson Mandela Premium Award 2022 – “In recognition of the valuable contribution to the promotion of Peace and Equality through Literature, especially in support of Ukraine during this unfortunate war.” Issued by the International Forum for Creativity and Humanity Kingdom of Morocco, and was granted The Artists Forum – the 1st Place Winner Prize – “In recognition of outstanding work in poetry – the Best Poetry Work the Experimental Performance. 2021.” New York City.

I recorded this audio track alongside Columbia and Princeton Universities’ teacher of English Ph.D. Maryam S. Alikhani, the charismatic sound artist Saphileaum and Poetry Orchestra. The video was made by Andrea Meparishvili and myself. Andrea, in that period when he made some edits and gave Poetry Orchestra an engineering support was 11-year-old. Can you imagine?

I am also working with magnificent Irakli Gabriel as well, and was granted the Spillwords Poetry Award 2019, New York City. Yeah, I cannot complain.

My recent publications are:

SPIRIT OF SILENCE – Audio album – book of poetry & music by Crystal Speech Records. 2024 New York City, USA.

THE SONGS OF THE AMERICAN PROPHETS – Audio album – book of poetry & music by Crystal Speech Records. 2023 New York City, USA.

A DOUBLE MEANING (Adelaide Books, 2022, poetry – New York City, USA with co-author Joshua Corwin – The Finalist of The American Book Fest 2023 in the category of Poetry)

EASTERN STAR (Adelaide Books, 2020, poetry – New York City, USA)

I participate in the various poetry reading series and poetry festivals all across the country, but mostly I am closely working with Brownstone Poets, Voices of Poetry and Poetry in New York Reading Series.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
So, many guests are visiting us – my family in New York, for example Lucas Hirsch had an American poetry tour here, a couple of month ago. We are good friends, we are brothers, he is the great Dutch poet, the best one, the gifted and brave man, we read together at the Poetry in New York event presented by Robert Galinsky and we had an unforgettable time, because we spent days and nights drifting in the streets of New York. I love Long Island and Brooklyn, Manhattan and New York Upstate, I love America, and I’ve always believed that the meaning of poetry is to be free. If you are poet, you are free, if you are free, you can do lots of things, what a wonderful way of living. It’s possible in America.

In my view some of the most fun, interesting, exciting people, places or things to check out are everywhere, you will see them if you feel yourself free, and especially in New York. No doubt I would drink and hang out with my friend after week-long trip at the Bowery Poetry and Elephant and Castle in Manhattan, will visit Montauk on Long Island, but I will eat and share the food made by my wife, because no one in the galaxy can make so delicious food as my lovely and beautiful wife. No one. Not even close. Yep.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I think Artistic Freedom Initiative, PEN America, Brownstone Poets, Voices of Poetry, AHRC NYC, The Artists Forum, ART OMI Ledig House, my colleagues poets and artists who wrote and sent the recommendation letters to USCIS office, and Musco / Kratochvil family deserve a credit and recognition in my story. They all helped me to survive, to stay alive, stay hopeful and strong and to continue my path.

Website: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Dephy

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Poet8King/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@daviddephy188

Other: https://artisticfreedominitiative.org/artists/david-dephy/

Image Credits
Kethy Jane, Dea Richmond, Ru Chita, Heath Antonio, Jose Figueroa