Siv Cedering (February 5, 1939 – November 17, 2007) was a
Swedish-American
Swedish Americans ( sv, svenskamerikaner) are Americans of Swedish ancestry. They include the 1.2 million Swedish immigrants during 1865–1915, who formed tight-knit communities, as well as their descendants and more recent immigrants.
Today, ...
poet, writer, and artist. She occasionally published as Siv Cedering Fox.
Early life
Siv Cedering was born 30 kilometers south of the
arctic circle in rural
Överkalix
Överkalix (; fi, Ylikainuu) is a locality and the seat of Överkalix Municipality in Norrbotten County, Sweden with 975 inhabitants in 2010.
Climate
Överkalix has a subarctic climate with significant temperature differences between the warm ...
,
Norrbotten County
Norrbotten County ( sv, Norrbottens län; se, Norrbottena leatna, fi, Norrbottenin lääni) is the northernmost county or '' län'' of Sweden. It is also the largest county by land area, almost a quarter of Sweden's total area. It shares border ...
,
Sweden, the second of four children. She began writing poetry at age 8. At 14, she immigrated with her family to San Francisco, where she graduated from
Lowell High School.
Career
A poet and fiction writer, Siv Cedering wrote many books in her native
Swedish
Swedish or ' may refer to:
Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically:
* Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland
** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used b ...
, as well as in English, her second language, publishing a total of 20 books and four works of translation. She also wrote plays, screenplays, music, and television programs, and was a widely exhibited painter and sculptor. She was self-taught, having never received any formal training, though she was mentored by such notable poets as
William Stafford. She later went on to teach in Graduate and Undergraduate writing programs all over the country.
Ms. Cedering won the Best Book of the Year Award in
Sweden for her first novel ''Playing in the Pig House''. This story is an autobiographical account of her early decision to celebrate creativity. She wrote children's books, including a playful series of books about an introspective pig who wrote poetry, some of which were adapted for television, for which Ms. Cedering wrote the music and provided the character drawings. Another of her novels, ''Oxen'', was made into the 1991 film
The Ox starring
Stellan Skarsgård
Stellan Skarsgård (, ; born 13 June 1951) is a Swedish actor. He is known for his collaborations with director Lars von Trier appearing in ''Breaking the Waves'' (1996), '' Dancer in the Dark'' (2000), '' Dogville'' (2007), ''Melancholia'' (20 ...
and directed by
Sven Nykvist
Sven Vilhem Nykvist (; 3 December 1922 – 20 September 2006) was a Swedish cinematographer. He worked on over 120 films, but is known especially for his work with director Ingmar Bergman. He won Academy Awards for his work on two Bergman fil ...
,
Ingrid Bergman
Ingrid Bergman (29 August 191529 August 1982) was a Swedish actress who starred in a variety of European and American films, television movies, and plays.Obituary '' Variety'', 1 September 1982. With a career spanning five decades, she is ofte ...
's longtime cinematographer. ''The Ox'' went on to receive a nomination for an
Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
The Academy Award for Best International Feature Film (known as Best Foreign Language Film prior to 2020) is one of the Academy Awards handed out annually by the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is given to a ...
.
Ms. Cedering's poetry and prose have appeared in over 200 anthologies, textbooks, and magazines, including ''Harper's'', ''Ms.'', ''Science'', and ''The New Republic''. She also wrote musicals for children and won prizes and grants for her screenplays. While gaining success as a poet and fiction writer, Ms. Cedering expressed herself in the visual arts, mastering the techniques of both painting and sculpture with a skill that led to her work being exhibited first in the
Hamptons
The Hamptons, part of the East End of Long Island, consist of the towns of Southampton and East Hampton, which together comprise the South Fork of Long Island, in Suffolk County, New York. The Hamptons are a popular seaside resort and one of ...
and later throughout the United States.
''Poets Remember Siv Cedering'' (Southampton Press. 4/17/08)
/ref>
Professional observations
*''"Siv was a one of a kind force of the spirit, a total original, who will never be replaced."''—Bill Henderson, founder of Pushcart Press
Pushcart Press is a publishing house established in 1972 by Bill Henderson (a one-time associate editor at Doubleday) and is perhaps most famous for its Pushcart Prize and for the anthology of prize winners it publishes annually. The press has ...
and editor of ''The Pushcart Prize
The Pushcart Prize is an American literary prize published by Pushcart Press that honors the best "poetry, short fiction, essays or literary whatnot" published in the small presses over the previous year. Magazine and small book press editors ar ...
''
*''"Siv was a remarkable woman, devoted to poetry and active in her devotion."'' – Donald Hall
Donald Andrew Hall Jr. (September 20, 1928 – June 23, 2018) was an American poet, writer, editor and literary critic. He was the author of over 50 books across several genres from children's literature, biography, memoir, essays, and includin ...
, former Poet Laureate of the United States
The Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress—commonly referred to as the United States Poet Laureate—serves as the official poet of the United States. During their term, the poet laureate seeks to raise the national cons ...
Bibliography
;Poetry
* ''Cup of Cold Water, with photographs by the author'' (New Rivers Press, 1973)
* ''Letters From the Island'' (Fiddlehead Books, 1973)
* ''Letters From Helge, with song by the author'' (New Rivers Press, 1974)
* ''Mother Is, Stein and Day'' (1975)
* ''How To Eat a Fortune Cookie, with illustrations by Sally Soper Bowers'' (New Rivers Press 1976)
* ''The Juggler, with illustrations by Bill Brauer'' (Sagarin Press, 1977)
* ''Color Poems, with illustrations by friends of the author'' (Calliopea Press, 1978)
* ''Twelve Pages From the Floating World'' (Calliopea Press, 1981)
* ''Ukiyo-e'' (Harper's Magazine, September, 1981)
* ''Letters From the Floating World: Selected and New Poems'' (University of Pittsburgh Press, 1984)
* ''Letters From an Observatory: New and Selected Poems 1973–1998'' (Karma Dog Editions, 1998)
* ''Vixen, with drawings by Connie Fox'' (Pushcart Press, 2007)
;Children's and Young Adult Books
* ''The Blue Horse, and Other Night Poems'' (New York: Houghton Mifflin/Clarion, 1979)
* ''Grisen som ville bli ren'' (Stockholm: Rabén & Sjögren, 1983)
* ''Polis, polis, potatisgris'' (Stockholm: Rabén & Sjögren, 1985)
* ''Grisen som ville bli julskinka'' (Stockholm: Rabén & Sjögren, 1986)
* ''Grisen far till Paris'' (Stockholm: Rabén & Sjögren, 1987)
* ''Mannen i ödebyn'' (Stockholm: Rabén & Sjögren, 1989)
;Novels
* ''Leken i grishuset'' (Stockholm: Prisma, 1980)
* ''Oxen'' (Stockholm: Prisma, 1981)
;Works Translated
''To English from Swedish:''
* ''Two Swedish Poets: Gösta Friberg and Göran Palm'' (New York: New Rivers Press, 1974)
* ''You and I and the World'', poems by Werner Aspenström, Merrick, (New York: Cross-Cultural Communications, 1980)
* ''Pearl's Adventure'' (translated with David Swickard from Pärlsork, by Lars Klinting) (New York: R&S Books/Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1987)
''To Swedish from English, Spanish, Danish:''
* Det Blommande Trädet (Native American Poetry) (Stockholm: Forum, 1973)
Awards
* 1995–99 Författarfonden, Swedish Writers Foundation: Five Year Salary Grant (for fiction and TV programs)
* 1992 New York Foundation for the Arts
The New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA) is an independent 501(c)(3) charity, funded through government, foundation, corporate, and individual support, established in 1971. It is part of a network of national not-for-profit arts organization ...
, Artist's Fellowship (screenwriting)
* 1992 Academy Award Nomination for Best Foreign Film (based on novel by SC)
* 1991 East End Arts Council, Photography Show, Exhibition Prize
* 1985 New York Foundation for the Arts
The New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA) is an independent 501(c)(3) charity, funded through government, foundation, corporate, and individual support, established in 1971. It is part of a network of national not-for-profit arts organization ...
, Artist's Fellowship, (poetry)
* 1985 Science Fiction Poetry Association
The Science Fiction & Fantasy Poetry Association (SFPA) is a society based in the United States with the aim of fostering an international community of writers and readers interested in poetry pertaining to the genres of science fiction, fantasy, ...
, Rhysling Award
__NOTOC__
The Rhysling Awards are an annual award given for the best science fiction, fantasy, or horror poem of the year. Unlike most literary awards, which are named for the creator of the award, the subject of the award, or a noted member of t ...
(poem on scientific theme)
* 1985 Pushcart Prize
The Pushcart Prize is an American literary prize published by Pushcart Press that honors the best "poetry, short fiction, essays or literary whatnot" published in the small presses over the previous year. Magazine and small book press editors ar ...
(poetry)
* 1980 Svenska Dagbladet
''Svenska Dagbladet'' (, "The Swedish Daily News"), abbreviated SvD, is a daily newspaper published in Stockholm, Sweden.
History and profile
The first issue of ''Svenska Dagbladet'' appeared on 18 December 1884. During the beginning of t ...
, Best Books of the Year Award (novel)
* 1977 Poetry Society of America, Emily Dickinson Award
* 1977 Pushcart Prize
The Pushcart Prize is an American literary prize published by Pushcart Press that honors the best "poetry, short fiction, essays or literary whatnot" published in the small presses over the previous year. Magazine and small book press editors ar ...
(fiction)
* 1977 New York State Council on the Arts
The New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA) is an arts council serving the U.S. state of New York. It was established in 1960 through a bill introduced in the New York State Legislature by New York State Senator MacNeil Mitchell (1905–1996 ...
, New York State Artists in Exhibition
* 1975 New York State Council on the Arts
The New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA) is an arts council serving the U.S. state of New York. It was established in 1960 through a bill introduced in the New York State Legislature by New York State Senator MacNeil Mitchell (1905–1996 ...
(video)
* 1976 1974-5 New York State Council on the Arts, CAPS Fellowship (poetry)
* 1974 Best Poems of 1973: Borestone Mountain Poetry Awards
The ''Borestone Mountain Poetry Awards'' was an annual series of poetry anthologies first published in 1949. The poems were selected from those published in a given year in English-language magazines and books; in each volume, individual poems wer ...
* 1973 Modernage Photography Gallery, Discovery Award (Exhibition Prize)
* 1970 Saturday Review, Photography Prize
* 1970 Poetry Society of America
The Poetry Society of America is a literary organization founded in 1910 by poets, editors, and artists. It is the oldest poetry organization in the United States. Past members of the society have included such renowned poets as Witter Bynner, Ro ...
, William Marion Reedy Award
* 1969 Poetry Society of America
The Poetry Society of America is a literary organization founded in 1910 by poets, editors, and artists. It is the oldest poetry organization in the United States. Past members of the society have included such renowned poets as Witter Bynner, Ro ...
, John Masefield Award
References
Further reading
*
External links
Siv Cedering's Official Website
Siv Cedering Artwork
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cedering, Siv
1939 births
2007 deaths
People from Överkalix Municipality
Swedish poets
Swedish–English translators
Swedish emigrants to the United States
English–Swedish translators
Rhysling Award for Best Long Poem winners
People from Sagaponack, New York
Swedish women poets
20th-century American poets
20th-century American women writers
20th-century translators
20th-century Swedish poets
20th-century Swedish women writers
21st-century American women