Matthew Sweeney
Matthew Sweeney | |
---|---|
Born | |
Genre | Poetry |
Literary movement | "Alternative Realism"[5] "Imagistic Narrative"[3] |
Notable works | Horse Music |
Spouse | Rosemary Barber[3] |
Partner | Mary Noonan[2] |
Children | Nico (daughter)[2] Malvin (son)[2] |
Matthew Gerard Sweeney (6 October 1952 – 5 August 2018)[6] was an Irish poet.[4] His work has been translated into Dutch, Italian, Hebrew, Japanese, Latvian, Mexican Spanish, Romanian, Slovakian and German.[3]
According to the poet Gerard Smyth: "I always sensed that in the first instance [Sweeney] regarded himself as a European rather than an Irish poet – and rightly so: like the German Georg Trakl whom he admired he apprehended the world in a way that challenged our perceptions and commanded our attention."[4] Sweeney's work has been considered "barely touched by the mainstream of English writing" and more so by the German writers Kleist, Büchner, Kafka, Grass and Böll, as well as the aforementioned Trakl.[5] According to Poetry International Web, Sweeney would be among the top five most famous Irish poets on the international scene.[7]
Biography
Sweeney was born at
He met Rosemary Barber in 1972. They married in 1979. Two offspring – daughter Nico and son Malvin – were produced before the couple went their separate ways in the early 21st century.[3] Having lived in London for many years until 2001, Sweeney separated from Rosemary and went to live in Timișoara (Romania) and Berlin (Germany). In 2007, he met his partner, Mary Noonan, and in early 2008 he moved to Cork to live with her there.[citation needed]
Work
Sweeney produced numerous collections of poetry for which he won several awards. His novels for children include The Snow Vulture (1992) and Fox (2002).[5] He authored a satirical thriller, co-written with John Hartley Williams, and entitled Death Comes for the Poets (2012).[4]
Bill Swainson, Sweeney's editor at
His final year saw the publication of two new collections: My Life As A Painter (
Awards
- 1984: New Statesman Prudence Farmer Award
- 1987: Cholmondeley Award
- 1999: Arts CouncilWriters' Award
- 2001: Arts Council of Ireland Writers' bursary[citation needed]
- 2007: T. S. Eliot Prize (shortlist)[14]
- 2008: Poetry Now Award (shortlist) for his collection Black Moon
- 2011: The Steven Kings Award
- 2012: Maria Elsa Authors and Poets Award
- 2014: Piggot Poetry Prize (for Horse Music)[15][16]
- Elected a member of Aosdána
Works
- Poetry
- A Dream of Maps. Dublin: ISBN 978-0-906897-17-1.
- A Round House. London: ISBN 978-0-906897-66-9.
- The Lame Waltzer. London: Allison & Busby/Dublin: Raven Arts Press. 1985. ISBN 978-0-85031-644-5.
- Blue Shoes. London: ISBN 978-0-436-50844-8.
- Cacti. Secker & Warburg. 1992. ISBN 978-0-436-50842-4.
- The Bridal Suite. London: ISBN 978-9984-510-75-0.
- A Smell of Fish. Jonathan Cape. 2000. ISBN 978-0-224-06067-7.
- Up on the Roof: New and Selected Poems. Illustrator David Austen. ISBN 978-0-571-20728-2.)
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: others (link - Selected Poems. Jonathan Cape. 2002. Véhicule Press, 2002)
- Sanctuary. Jonathan Cape. 2004. ISBN 978-0-224-07345-5.
- Black Moon. Jonathan Cape. 2007. ISBN 978-0-224-08092-7.
- The Night Post. ISBN 978-1-84471-484-1.
- Horse Music. ISBN 978-1-85224-967-0.
- Inquisition Lane. Bloodaxe Books. 2015. ISBN 978-1-78037-148-1.
- My Life as a Painter. Bloodaxe Books. 2018. ISBN 978-1-78037-414-7.
- King of a Rainy Country, Arc Publications, September 2018[17]
- Contributor to A New Divan: A Lyrical Dialogue Between East and West, Gingko Library, 2019. ISBN 978-1-909942-28-8
- Editor
- (with ISBN 978-0-571-17207-8.
- (with ISBN 978-0-85646-296-2.
- The New Faber Book of Children's Verse. Faber & Faber. 2001. ISBN 978-0-571-21905-6.
- Irish Poems. Macmillan. 2005. ISBN 978-0-333-98748-3.
- Novel
- Death Comes For The Poets. MUS. 2012. ISBN 978-0-9572136-0-9. Satirical crime novel, co-written with John Hartley Williams
- Criticism
- Writing Poetry. Teach Yourself series. McGraw-Hill. 2008. ISBN 978-0-07-160250-1. With John Hartley Williams
See also
References
- ^ a b "Death Notice of Matthew Sweeney". RIP.ie. 5 August 2018. Archived from the original on 9 August 2018. Retrieved 5 August 2018.
- ^ Irish Times Trust. Archived from the originalon 8 August 2018. Retrieved 8 August 2018.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Swainson, Bill (9 August 2018). "Matthew Sweeney obituary: Prolific poet whose darkly humorous fables expressed the strangeness of the world with a sense of delight". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 9 August 2018. Retrieved 9 August 2018.
- ^ a b c d e f g O'Halloran, Marie (5 August 2018). "Aosdána poet Matthew Sweeney dies at 66 of motor neurone disease". The Irish Times. Irish Times Trust. Retrieved 5 August 2018.
- ^ a b c d "Matthew Sweeney". contemporarywriters.com. Archived from the original on 9 October 2009. at British Council, Literature.
- ^ a b Wood, Heloise (6 August 2018). "'Wonderful' poet Sweeney dies aged 66". The Bookseller. Archived from the original on 7 August 2018. Retrieved 6 August 2018.
- ^ "Matthew Sweeney (1952–2018)". Poetry International Web. Archived from the original on 10 August 2018.
- ^ Horse Music. Bloodaxe Books. 2013. p. 96.
- ^ "Matthew Sweeney". Poetry Foundation. Archived from the original on 9 August 2018.
- ^ "29th Poetry International Festival Rotterdam". Poetry International Web. 1998. Archived from the original on 22 November 2017. Retrieved 10 August 2018.
- ^ "34th Poetry International Festival Rotterdam". Poetry International Web. 2003. Archived from the original on 1 December 2017.
- ^ "40th Poetry International Festival Rotterdam". Poetry International Web. 2009. Archived from the original on 1 December 2017.
- ^ Sheridan, Colette (23 April 2018). "Matthew Sweeney: 'I prefer not to dwell on my inevitable demise'". Irish Examiner. Thomas Crosbie Holdings. Archived from the original on 23 April 2018. Retrieved 23 April 2018.
- ^ Crown, Sarah (1 November 2007). "First collection vies with established names for TS Eliot prize". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 6 October 2014. Retrieved 1 November 2007.
- ^ "POETRY READING with Matthew Sweeney and Mary Noonan 'Dancing with Horses'". Sterts Theatre and Arts Centre. 31 May 2015.
- Independent News & Media. Retrieved 26 April 2015.
- ^ "King of a Rainy Country by Matthew Sweeney", Poetry Book Society.
External links
- Official website
- Ireland – Matthew Sweeney at Poetry International Web (with poem audio files)
- Matthew Sweeney at the Poetry Archive
- Some Sweeney poems at Blackbox Manifold, Issue: No. 2 (January 2009)
- Review of The Night Post.
- Sheridan, Colette. "Matthew Sweeney: 'I prefer not to dwell on my inevitable demise'" (interview), Irish Examiner, 23 April 2018.