"...A translation comes later than he original, and since the important works of world literature never find their choosen translators at the time of their origin, their translation marks their stage of continued life." - Walter Benjamin


Here is a good article on the the art of translation:

http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/15984

"A. Translation is the art of revelation. It makes the unknown known. The translator artist has the fever and craft to recognize, re-create, and reveal the work of the other artist. But even when famous at home, the work comes into an alien city as an orphan with no past to its readers. In rags, hand-me-downs, or dramatic black capes of glory, it is surprise, morning, a distinctive stranger. The orphan is Don Quijote de la Mancha in Chicago."