Ivan Blatný
Encyclopedia
Ivan Blatný was a Czech
poet, member of Skupina 42 (Group 42)
.
In March 1948, after the Communist seizure of power in his native country, Blatný left his country - just one of many figures in Czech Literature
who chose to emigrate rather than go underground. However, he found life in exile difficult, as did many other émigré Czech writers such as Ivan Diviš
. During his subsequent life in the United Kingdom, he spent time in various mental hospitals.
From 1984 until shortly before his death, he lived in a retirement home in Clacton-on-Sea
. A plaque commemorating his stay can be seen on the wall of the Edensor Care Home in Orwell Road. His ashes were taken to the central cemetery in Brno.
Czech people
Czechs, or Czech people are a western Slavic people of Central Europe, living predominantly in the Czech Republic. Small populations of Czechs also live in Slovakia, Austria, the United States, the United Kingdom, Chile, Argentina, Canada, Germany, Russia and other countries...
poet, member of Skupina 42 (Group 42)
Group 42
Group 42 was a Czech artistic group officially established in 1942 . The group's activity ceased in 1948, but its influence on Czech literature and Czech art was still evident in further years....
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Life
Blatný, the son of the writer Lev Blatný, was a member of the Skupina 42 (Group 42 - association of Czech modern artists).In March 1948, after the Communist seizure of power in his native country, Blatný left his country - just one of many figures in Czech Literature
Czech literature
Czech literature is the literature written by Czechs or other inhabitants of the Czech state, mostly in the Czech language, although other languages like Old Church Slavonic, Latin or German have been also used, especially in the past. Modern authors from the Czech territory who wrote in other...
who chose to emigrate rather than go underground. However, he found life in exile difficult, as did many other émigré Czech writers such as Ivan Diviš
Ivan Diviš
Ivan Diviš was a significant Czech poet and essayist of the 2nd half of the 20th century.- Biography :...
. During his subsequent life in the United Kingdom, he spent time in various mental hospitals.
From 1984 until shortly before his death, he lived in a retirement home in Clacton-on-Sea
Clacton-on-Sea
Clacton-on-Sea is the largest town on the Tendring peninsula, in Essex, England and was founded in 1871. It is a seaside resort that attracted many tourists in the summer months between the 1950s and 1970s, but which like many other British sea-side resorts went into decline as a holiday...
. A plaque commemorating his stay can be seen on the wall of the Edensor Care Home in Orwell Road. His ashes were taken to the central cemetery in Brno.
Works
At the beginning of his career, Blatný mostly wrote using conventional rhyming and rhythmic forms such as alexandrine quatrains, most notably in the Brno Elegies (Czech, Melancholické procházky; Prague: Melantrich, 1941). The correct translation of the Czech title is 'Melancholic Walks', but Blatný's original title Brněnské elegie was forbidden by the war-time censor for its suggestion that the poet might have been regretful about the German invasion of Czechoslovakia. The poems themselves make no reference whatsoever to contemporary events, but concentrate on Brno and its hinterland, with a beautiful hypnotic lyricism.Publications
- Melancholické procházky (Prague: Melantrich, 1941)
- Tento večer (1945)
- Hledání přítomného času (1947)
- Stará bydliště (1979)
- Pomocná škola Bixley (1979; Praha: KDM 1982)
- Ivan Blatný: The Drug of Art. Selected Poems, ed. Veronika Tuckerová (New York: Ugly Duckling PresseUgly Duckling PresseUgly Duckling Presse is an American nonprofit art and publishing collective based in Brooklyn, New York City that publishes small to mid-size runs of poetry, translations, lost works, and artist's books. It was founded in 1993 by Matvei Yankelevich as a college zine before expanding to publishing...
, 2007). Translations by Anna Moschovakis, Matthew Sweney, Justin QuinnJustin QuinnJustin Quinn is an Irish poet and critic, born in Dublin in 1968. He received a doctorate from Trinity College, Dublin, where his contemporaries included poets Caitriona O'Reilly and Sinéad Morrissey, and now lives with his wife and sons in Prague...
, Veronika Tuckerová, Alex ZuckerAlex ZuckerAlex Zucker is an American literary translator.-Life and career:Zucker was born in New Brunswick, New Jersey. From ages 4 to 17, he lived in East Lansing, Michigan. He attended college at UMass Amherst, obtaining a Bachelor of Science in Zoology in 1986...
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Criticism
- Hejda, Zbyněk, 'Passer-By: The Poetry of Ivan Blatný'. Metre 12 (Autumn 2002): 171-84.
- See also, Ivan Blatný: The Drug of Art (2007) for essays by Josef ŠkvoreckýJosef ŠkvoreckýJosef Škvorecký, CM is a leading contemporary Czech writer and publisher who has spent much of his life in Canada. He and his wife were long-time supporters of Czech dissident writers before the fall of communism in that country...
, Veronika Tuckerová and Antonín Petruželka. - Review of The Drug of Art, by David Wheatley, Contemporary Poetry Review (October 2008)http://www.cprw.com/Wheatley/blatny.htm