Gunārs Saliņš
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Gunars Saliņš (21 April 1924 – 29 June 2010) was a
modernist Modernism was an early 20th-century movement in literature, visual arts, and music that emphasized experimentation, abstraction, and Subjectivity and objectivity (philosophy), subjective experience. Philosophy, politics, architecture, and soc ...
poet within the Latvian
lyric poetry Modern lyric poetry is a formal type of poetry which expresses personal emotions or feelings, typically spoken in the first person. The term for both modern lyric poetry and modern song lyrics derives from a form of Ancient Greek literature, t ...
tradition. He became a leading voice of the " Hell's Kitchen artists" (Elles ķēķis)—a Latvian emigre artist community in the U.S. which flourished in the 1950s and 60s, named after the neighborhood in
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...
where it originated. In his youth, he was inspired by the Latvian poet
Aleksandrs Čaks Aleksandrs Čaks (born Aleksandrs Čadarainis; 27 October 1901 – 8 February 1950), was a Latvian poet and writer. Čaks is arguably the first Latvian writer whose works are distinctly urban, compared to the usual depictions of country life or ...
and later by writers such as
Rainer Maria Rilke René Karl Wilhelm Johann Josef Maria Rilke (4 December 1875 – 29 December 1926), known as Rainer Maria Rilke, was an Austrian poet and novelist. Acclaimed as an Idiosyncrasy, idiosyncratic and expressive poet, he is widely recognized as ...
,
Guillaume Apollinaire Guillaume Apollinaire (; ; born Kostrowicki; 26 August 1880 – 9 November 1918) was a French poet, playwright, short story writer, novelist and art critic of Poland, Polish descent. Apollinaire is considered one of the foremost poets of the ...
,
Federico García Lorca Federico del Sagrado Corazón de Jesús García Lorca (5 June 1898 – 19 August 1936) was a Spanish poet, playwright, and theatre director. García Lorca achieved international recognition as an emblematic member of the Generation of '27, a g ...
, and
Dylan Thomas Dylan Marlais Thomas (27 October 1914 – 9 November 1953) was a Welsh poet and writer, whose works include the poems " Do not go gentle into that good night" and " And death shall have no dominion", as well as the "play for voices" ''Un ...
. Saliņš' imagery playfully explored transformational and metaphysical elements in this world and beyond, often incorporating his personal experiences with allusions to myth, art, and ancient Latvian folklore—a process he referred to as "orpheism". Gunars Saliņš's poetry was widely circulated within the
Latvian diaspora The Latvian diaspora refers to Latvians and people of Latvian descent residing outside Latvia. According to estimates by the Latvian Foreign Ministry, as at 2012, about 370,000 Latvian citizens permanently resided outside of Latvia, most of ...
post-WWII; later, his work was rediscovered and championed in Latvia in the post-Soviet era. In 2000, Saliņš was awarded the
Order of the Three Stars Order of the Three Stars () is the highest civilian order awarded for meritorious service to Latvia. It was established in 1924 in remembrance of the founding of Latvia. Its motto is ''Per aspera ad astra'', meaning "Through hardships towards the ...
by the Republic of Latvia.


Academic and family life

Gunars Saliņš was born on April 21, 1924, in
Dobele Dobele (; ) is a town in the Semigallia region of Latvia. It is located near the center of Latvia on the banks of the river Bērze. It received town rights in 1917 whilst being a part of the German occupied Courland Governorate during the First ...
, Latvia, where his father was the principal of the local school. Gunars followed his father's footsteps, graduating from the Teachers' Training Institute in
Jelgava Jelgava () is a state city in central Latvia. It is located about southwest of Riga. It is the largest town in the Semigallia region of Latvia. Jelgava was the capital of the united Duchy of Courland and Semigallia (1578–1795) and was the ad ...
, Latvia in 1944. Soon after, the Soviet regime re-occupied the country, and he, together with his wife, Jautrite, set forth to start a new life elsewhere. After spending five years in a displaced persons' camp in
Augsburg Augsburg ( , ; ; ) is a city in the Bavaria, Bavarian part of Swabia, Germany, around west of the Bavarian capital Munich. It is a College town, university town and the regional seat of the Swabia (administrative region), Swabia with a well ...
, Germany, they were granted permission to emigrate to the United States, eventually settling in New Jersey. They both completed their university studies in the US. Gunars became a professor of psychology and sociology, and taught at
Union College Union College is a Private university, private liberal arts college in Schenectady, New York, United States. Founded in 1795, it was the first institution of higher learning chartered by the New York State Board of Regents, and second in the s ...
from 1955 to 1996, having earned his B.A. at
Upsala College Upsala College (UC) was a private college affiliated with the Swedish-American Augustana Synod (later the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America) and located in East Orange in Essex County, New Jersey in the United States, with an additiona ...
, New Jersey, and his M.A. at the
New School for Social Research The New School for Social Research (NSSR), previously known as The University in Exile and The New School University, is a graduate-level educational division of The New School in New York City, United States. NSSR enrolls more than 1,000 stud ...
, New York. Jautrite Saliņš earned her doctorate in
German Literature German literature () comprises those literature, literary texts written in the German language. This includes literature written in Germany, Austria, the German parts of Switzerland and Belgium, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, South Tyrol in Italy ...
at
Rutgers University Rutgers University ( ), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a Public university, public land-grant research university consisting of three campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's C ...
, and went on to teach German language and literature until her retirement from
Kean College Kean University () is a public university in Union, Elizabeth, and Hillside, New Jersey. It is part of New Jersey's public system of higher education and is a state-designated research university. The university was founded in 1855 in Newark, ...
, New Jersey. She later completed a 3-volume family memoir and assisted with the publication of Gunars' collected poems. They have three children: Laris, Laila and Lalita; and four grandchildren: Andrejs, Niklavs, Alida and Aldis. Gunars (known by his family and friends as ''Gonka'') died in his home on June 29, 2010.


Literary activity

* Poetry published in newspapers and magazines in Latvia, Germany and the U.S., beginning with 1945 * Founding member (together with his close friend, the poet
Linards Tauns Linards Tauns (born Arnolds Mikus Bērzs-Bērziņš) (October 13, 1922 – July 30, 1963) was a Latvian writer. He was one of the immigrant artists who formed the Hell's Kitchen school of art among Latvian immigrants in New York City. Biogr ...
) of the "Hell's Kitchen artists" - a Latvian emigre artist community, centered around New York City, in the late 1950s and 60s * Poetry volumes, reviews and anthologies published in the US from 1957 to 1979; in Latvia from 1993 to 2006 * Reviews of contemporary Latvian poetry, and translations of
Rainer Maria Rilke René Karl Wilhelm Johann Josef Maria Rilke (4 December 1875 – 29 December 1926), known as Rainer Maria Rilke, was an Austrian poet and novelist. Acclaimed as an Idiosyncrasy, idiosyncratic and expressive poet, he is widely recognized as ...
's poetry


Awards

Gunars Saliņš was awarded multiple awards for his poetry. Thrice he won the cultural award of the World Federation of Free Latvians (PBLA), in 1968, in 1980 and in 2008. In 1982 he received the
Zinaida Lazda __NOTOC__ Zenaida, Zenaide (Italian), Zénaïde ( French), or Zinaida (), from meaning "dedicated to Zeus".Behind the Na ...
award for his poetry collection ''Rendez-vous'' (''Satikšanās''). In 2000 he was awarded the
Order of the Three Stars Order of the Three Stars () is the highest civilian order awarded for meritorious service to Latvia. It was established in 1924 in remembrance of the founding of Latvia. Its motto is ''Per aspera ad astra'', meaning "Through hardships towards the ...
by the Latvian government, and in 2006 he was awarded the "Yearly Literature Award" from the Writers' Association of Latvia, honoring his lifetime achievement in poetry.: "Writings - Poetry"


Works


Poetry collections

* ''Tavern of Fog and other poems'' (''Miglas krogs un citi dzejoļi''), publ. in Brooklyn in 1957 by Grāmatu Draugs (Book Friend) * ''Black Sun'' (''Melnā saule''), publ. in Brooklyn in 1967 by Grāmatu Draugs * ''Rendez-vous'' (''Satikšanās''), publ. in Brooklyn in 1979 by Grāmatu Draugs * ''Inspirations-- from Naudite to Hell's Kitchen and 33 poems - quite recent'' (''Iedvesmas no Naudītes līdz Elles ķēķim un 33 dzejoļi — itin neseni'') publ. in Riga by Fateful Stories (Likteņstāsti), 1997) * ''Rendez-vous at the Tavern of Fog by the Black Sun'' (''Satiksimies miglas krogā pie melnās sales''), publ. in 1993 in Riga by the Press Club, edited by Māris Čaklais * ''Writings - Volume 1 - Poetry'', publ. in 2006 in Riga by Valters & Rapa, edited by
Kārlis Vērdiņš Kārlis Vērdiņš (born 28 July 1979) is a Latvian poet. Biography Vērdiņš grew up in Jelgava. He studied for his B.A. and M.A. in Cultural Theory at the Latvian Academy of Culture. In 2009 he received his Ph.D. in Philology from the Uni ...
* ''Writings - Volume 2 - Poetry. Translations. Prose'', publ. in 2023 in Riga by ILFA, edited by Kārlis Vērdiņš.


In translation

*''Lettische Lyrik.'' Atdz. E. Zuzena-Metuzala. Maximilian Dietrich Verlag (1983) *''Nära röster över vatten.'' Tulk. Juris Kronbergs. Stockholm: En bok för alla (1997) *''Антология на съвременната латвийска поезия'' ontemporary Latvian poetry anthologyTranslated by Aksīnija Mihailova. Sofija: Foundation for Bulgarian Literature (2008)


English

* ''Translations from Latvian'' (poetry of Gunars Salins and Linards Tauns in English, Exeter, 1968) by Ruth Speirs * ''Contemporary Latvian Poetry'' edited by Inara Cedrins, Iowa Translations series, 1984, The University of Iowa * ''Contemporary East European Poetry: An Anthology'', Emery George (Editor), Oxford University Press, USA; Expanded edition (February 17, 1994). * ''All Birds Know This. Selected Contemporary Latvian Poetry''; editors
Astrīde Ivaska Astrid Ivask (born Astrīde Helēna Hartmane, Latvian Astrīde Ivaska; also; August 7, 1926 – March 24, 2015) was a Latvian-American poet. Biography She was born Astrīde Helēna Hartmane in Riga, the daughter of Mārtiņš Hartmanis, a Latv ...
and Māra Rūmniece, publ. by Tapals (2001)


References


Sources


''Gunars Saliņš: Poet of the Two Suns''
Astrid Ivask. publ. in Books Abroad, Vol. 43, No. 1 (Winter, 1969), pp. 55–58: * ''The Intervention of Art in the Poetry of Gunars Saliņš''. Inta Ezergailis, publ. in LITUANUS, the Lithuanian Quarterly Journal of Arts and Sciences, Vol. 26
''Poetic text and human feeling in Gunars Saliņš and Henrikas Radauskas"''
Rimvydas Šilbajoris, Journal of Baltic Studies, Vol. 13, Issue 2, June 1982, pgs. 91-97

Jaunā Gaita, Nr. 263, ziema 2010 {{DEFAULTSORT:Salins, Gunars 1924 births 2010 deaths People from Dobele Latvian male poets Modernist poets 20th-century Latvian poets 20th-century Latvian male writers Upsala College alumni Latvian World War II refugees Latvian emigrants to the United States Union College (New York) faculty The New School alumni