Background

Johannes Paul Richard Theodorus van de Waasenburg was born July 21, 1943, in Helmond, Noord-Brabant, Netherlands.

Education

Hans van de Waarsenburg attended Nutskweekschool, where he studied under Aldert Walrecht.

Career

Hans van de Waarsenburg published his first collection of poems, entitled Gedichten (Poems), in 1965. His poetry of 1960s is full of optimism for the unlimited possibilities of the revolution that would overthrow twentieth-century Western society. He also wrote passionate anti-Vietnam pieces and other angry protest poems. He even turned against poetry itself, since publishing collections of paper poetry was not in tune with his desire to shout out his anger at the world.

When the revolution never came, and his generation could not end injustice and violence, van de Waarsenburg's poetry lost some of its fervor, reflecting his disappointment through an increasingly melancholic and bitter tone. He felt that because poetry had lost its power, human existence had become inauthentic. Drawn into the apathetic mood of the time, he distanced himself from society more and more in his later work. In the writing he did undertake, van de Waarsenburg focused on the new subject matter, including some observations about his grandfather's decline. Van de Waarsenburg's poetry largely lacks rhyme and meter, creating internal tension and rhythm by instead breaking the sentences in certain places. His tone fluctuates between tender and aggressive, giving his poetry a unique character and intensity. Besides poetry Van de Waarsenburg also wrote children's fiction.

In 1966, he became a teacher in Maastricht, where he was active in political and cultural matters. Between 1995 and 2000, Hans van de Waarsenburg was chairman of the PEN Centre of the Netherlands. In 1997, he became a chairman of The Maastricht International Poetry Nights, an impressive biannual international poetry festival.

Achievements

• Hans van de Waarsenburg had more than twenty books published. His selected poems were published in several countries. He earned Jan Campert Prize for Poetry and Municipal Award of the Helmond Town Council for his entire work.

Works

More photos

• book

  • Edwin Smet 2015
  • Een rijbroek uit Canada 2016
  • So treibt die Insel - Zo drijft het eiland 2008
  • Azul 2009

Personality

Quotes from others about the person

• Hans Groenewegen: "Hans van de Waarsenburg is quietly working on an impressive oeuvre. He possesses great technical skills, which he uses to vary and intensify his standard themes and motifs. He is no innovator, nor does he slavishly follow the latest fads. Neither is he a poet who forces himself on our attention in that loud entourage which more and more replaces literature itself. Loyalty is the key to Van de Waarsenburg's work. His poetry expresses a loyalty to the people around him, loyalty to their motives, and desires. He has an eye for their vulnerability, their futility, and their restrictions. It is first of all expressed in the earnest and careful way in which he uses language. Thus a careful listener hears an individual and unmistakable voice rising from the poetry."

Connections

teacher:

Aldert Walrecht