Poet
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Ruben Gogh 1967-... country: the Netherlands language: Dutch |
alias ‘the Man of Language’, has worked as a stand-up comedian and a poetry critic for the newspaper Algemeen Dagblad. His poems display a fascination with fast, modern living and clarity in speech and writing. De Man van Taal (1996); De hemel in, de hemel uit (1999); Aan het eind van het begin (2001); Zoekmachines (2002). Ruben van Gogh (1967) could, with some justification, be called the jeune premier of Dutch poetry. Not only is he one of the Netherlands’ most sought-after stand-up poets, performing all over Europe ‘from Zeewolde to Albania’, he also has compiled a representative anthology of his generation entitled Sprong naar de sterren (Leap for the Stars, 1999). Ruben van Gogh earlier worked as a stand-up comedian and poetry critic, and translated a collection of poems by the French chansonnier Jacques Prévert under the title We hebben elkaar lief (We love each other). Moreover, he was editor of the literary magazine Vrijstaat Austerlitz. The first two volumes of his own poetry appeared in 2001 in a reprinted edition, Aan het eind van het begin (At the End of the Beginning), and in 2002 he published his third collection, Zoekmachines (Search Engines). Born in the Netherlands’ extreme north, Ruben van Gogh now resides in Utrecht, where he is a major player on the city’s literary scene. His self-coined alias ‘the Man of Language’ certainly hits the mark. The poetry of this literary Jack-of-all-trades bespeaks a keen interest in phenomena as wide apart as architecture, pop music and space exploration. His versatility also shows in the many styles and forms he uses; at times free and loose, at other times archaic or classical. By the same token he can be either anecdotal and transparent or baroque and alienating. In other words, not a poet to be easily pegged down. In his first collection, De Man van Taal (The Man of Language) his energetic conception of reality is at once apparent: ‘The universe is a busy place. / Stars, planets hurtling randomly about / have to be steered in their courses.’ In a similar manner this poet dances about his country’s poetic universe. Even in melancholy moments one senses his indomitable élan, as in his poem ‘Big Bang’: ‘Just let me pass on – lonely you are, lonely, / lonely & alone – I expand / in incarnated heavenly rays.’ In short: a true poet of our time. Author: Rob Schouten Translated by Ko Kooman Poets: |
