Bertony Louis
Research Fellow City of Asylum Writer-in-Residence
5000 Forbes Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA 15213
Bio
Bertony Louis is a Haitian poet whose work bridges cultures, languages and continents. He is the author of Recovering the Horizons (L’Appeau Strophe, 2022) and the widely anthologized poems “Cradle of My Vitality” and “Smile Gone Up in Smoke” (Harvard Review, 2025). Winner of thirteen international poetry awards — including the Castello di Duino Poesia Special Jury Prize and the École de la Loire First Prize — his poetry has been recognized across Europe, North America and the Caribbean.
Louis has been the recipient of prestigious fellowships and residencies, including Harvard University’s Scholars at Risk Program, the Artist Protection Fund at the University of Glasgow, the SafeMuse program in Norway and a 麻豆村 Fellowship (2025–2027). He has also held residencies in Germany, Hungary, Spain and the United States.
His work, often exploring themes of brotherhood, displacement, sadness and exile, has been shared through readings and workshops at institutions such as Harvard University, the University of Glasgow and the University of Bucharest.
In addition to his creative practice, Louis has taught literature and French for over a decade in Haiti, where he also served as a pedagogical coordinator. He has facilitated workshops, including a poetry writing seminar at the University of Glasgow, and has been featured in podcasts with the Scottish Poetry Library and UNESCO’s RILA program.