Vladimir Svetlov is a photographer, poet, and performer. A member of Orbita since 2000, Svetlov participated on the group’s spoken word CDs 02 and 04 and has appeared in its performances throughout eastern Europe and Russia. His poetry has been translated into Latvian, English, German, and Italian. His first book of poetry and photographs, used, was published in 2014.

Sergej Timofejev (Riga, 1970) has published seven books of poems, most recently STEREO. One of the founding members of Orbita, Timofejev’s work has been translated into many languages and he has participated in poetry festivals across Europe. He loves summer, apples, and yesterday’s papers.

Semyon Khanin (Riga, 1974) is the author of the books Afloat, Suppressed Details, and Just Now. His books and chapbooks have been translated into English, Latvian, and Czech. Khanin frequently collaborates with musicians in readings and performances. A founding member of Orbita, Khanin also works in three-dimensional poetry and performance.

Kevin M. F. Platt is a professor of Russian and East European Studies at the University of Pennsylvania. His scholarly work focuses on Russian poetry, culture, and history. His translations of Russian poetry have appeared in World Literature Today, Jacket2, Fence, and other journals. He is the author or editor of several scholarly books, the most recent of which is Global Russian Cultures (University of Wisconsin Press). He translated the collection of contemporary poetry by the Orbita Group, Hit Parade (UDP).

Artur Punte (Riga, 1977) is a poet and media-artist and one of the founding members of Orbita. A graduate of the Gorky Institute of Literature in Moscow, he is the author of three collections of poetry. Punte has translated poetry from Latvian and occasionally writes in Latvian. He has co-edited the majority of books published by Orbita, including the Anthology of Contemporary Russian Poetry of Latvia.