Elena Kostioukovitch, is a historian of Italian culture,
literary translator, essayist and visiting professor of several Italian
Universities, permanently living in Italy since 1988.
Background: Moscow State University, Italian Studies. From 1980 to 1988 active as literary advisor for the «Sovremennaja chudozhestvennaja literatura za rubezhom» (Contemporary foreign literature) magazine, Moscow. From 1988 to 1991 a full-time researcher in the Department of World Literature of the Academy of Sciences of the URSS. From 1989 to 1995 teaching as visiting professor in the Trento University in Italy. Visiting professor in University of Trieste (1990, 1991), visiting professor in Pavia University in 1995 and in the State University of Milan: from 1998 up to this day (2005/2006).
Winner of the Best Translation of the Year award (1988 Moscow), of «Zoil» literary award (1999 Moscow) and Grinzane Cavour Moscow literary prize (2004 Italy)
Translator of Umberto Eco’s world famous bestsellers «The name of the Rose», «The Foucault’s Pendulum», «The island of the day before», «Baudolino» (top rating for the translator's work as «Best Russian authors» OZON, for four months, fall 2003) as well as «Five moral essays», «How to write the university thesis». Translated Emanuele Tesauro’s «Aristotle’s telescope» (the only complete translation that exists worldwide), Italo Calvino’s books. Poetry of Latin, Spanish, English and French poets.
Published Anthologies: «Modern Russian writing chosen by Elena Kostioukovitch» (Bompiani 1990, several reprints), «Roots of Russian Culture» by Dmitry Likhachev (final editing, editorial choice, preface for Fabbri, 1991: several reprints and foreign sells); edited «Five centuries of European drawings» (Leonardo Arte 1995, overall editing), «Treasures of Troya» (Leonardo Arte 1996, overall editing Italian and Russian editions), «The S.Petersburg Muraqqa’», Leonardo Arte, 1996 (overall editing English and Russian editions). Edited «Nina’s Diary» by Nina Lugovskaya (Frassinelli, Milano, and worldwide editions). Supervisor of B.Akunin editions (Italy) and promoter/editor of world-class prose of Ludmila Ulitskaya for Frassinelli, Italy.
«Jewish Stories and Tell-tales» (idea, overall editing, general and section presentations and prefaces, glossary, notes for Bompiani, Milano, 2002).
Short stories for Panta magazine, Bompiani, Milano, 1993 – 2001.
Print Journalism: Itoghi – Russian Newsweek (Moscow), Ezhenedel’nyj Zhurnal (Moscow), Novaja Model (Moscow), L’Espresso (Italy), Panorama (Italy).