The Iconic Poet Tomaž Šalamun

Tomaž Šalamun (1941–2014) is an icon. With his freely associative, imaginative, and courageous verses he revolutionised Slovenian poetry in times when criticism of the regime, unique humour, and homosexuality in poetry were frowned upon or prohibited. He not only greatly influenced all present-day Slovenian poetry, but also many younger generations of international, especially American, poets. He worked in the USA as a lecturer and as a Slovene cultural attaché. His oeuvre comprises countless volumes, with many poems being published posthumously. A selection of his works was published by Suhrkamp publishing house in 2023 under the title Steine aus dem Himmel, translated by Matthias Göritz, Liza Linde and Monika Rinck. The afterword by Matthias Göritz includes quotes from a conversation about poetry that Aleš Šteger had with Tomaž Šalamun, which was published by Axel Dielmann Verlag in 2023 under the title Die Fähre.