Les Ruines Circulaires by Orianne Ciantar Olive
SIGNED COPIES
In "Les Ruines Circulaires," Orianne Ciantar Olive constructs a labyrinth of verse that, like the architecture of dreams imagined by Borges himself, entwines the ephemeral with the eternal. Her poetry, embroidered with the inevitable decay and perennial rebirth of civilizations, carries the reader through a cyclic maze of existential contemplation.
Orianne Ciantar Olive use of language, both French and English, serves as a double helix, intertwining to evoke a universal resonance that transcends linguistic boundaries, much like Borges’ fascination with the infinite and the simultaneous existence of multiple realities. Her text, rich in metaphors, reflects a world where "the fires dance" amidst darkness and "a red rose rests" upon an expanse of ashes, encapsulating the dualities of existence and non-existence, creation and ruin.
The ruins, both as a motif and a title, are reminiscent of Borges' recurring themes of infinite cycles and mirrored realities. They are not merely remnants but symbols of the continuous narrative of humanity—each stone laid is both a memory of the past and a prophecy of the future. In her poignant depiction of landscapes marred by the passage of time and human folly, Orianne Ciantar Olive echoes Borges' fascination with history and myth, weaving them into a fabric where time loses its linearity.
Integrating the lyrical sensibility of Etel Adnan, Orianne Ciantar Olive paints with her words landscapes imbued with color and emotion, much like Adnan’s visual and poetic explorations of her Lebanese-American heritage. The text resonates with Adnan's vibrant dialogues between land and memory, where the personal and the universal collide and coalesce. Adnan’s influence is palpable in Orianne Ciantar Olive tender yet vivid depictions of a sun-drenched landscape, reflecting a shared Mediterranean lineage and an inherent rebellion against the confines of a single identity.
Moreover, her reflections on personal and collective memory, encapsulated in vignettes of lives marked by tragedy and resilience, would intrigue Borges, who often pondered the interplay between memory and identity. Orianne Ciantar Olive characters, caught in the interstices of their own narratives, seem to navigate a Borgesian universe where every choice and every moment is laden with the weight of infinite outcomes.
In sum, Orianne Ciantar Olive "Les Ruines Circulaires" could be seen as a dialogue with Borges’ and Adnan’s own philosophical inquiries. Here, the ruins stand as a metaphysical ground zero, a place where all possible paths converge and diverge, and where every echo of the past shapes the silence of the future. Olive, like Borges and Adnan, invites us to peer into this mirror of text and see not just the reflection of the world but the outline of the universe itself, endlessly reimagining itself amidst the ruins of time.
