Vesna Parun
Vesna Parun (Zlarin, 10.04. 1922. – Stubičke Toplice, 25. 10. 2010.) was a Croatian poet, dramatic and children author.
Biography
She was born in Zlarin on Zlarin, an island in the Adriatic sea, near Šibenik into the family with four children. Her father, Ante, was a municipal clerk who often changed his place of service, so she grew up in Split, Biograd on the sea and Šibenik. She completed the elementary school in Vis, high school in Šibenik and Split, and college of Philology in Zagreb. Her studies were interrupted by second world war, during which her brother died. When she was 25 years old, she became ill with typhus and abandons studies because of illness and unhappy love. From 1962 till 1967. she lives in Bulgaria where she gets married and divorced. She returns to Zagreb where she works as a free writer. In 2000. she moves to Stubičke Toplice where she lives until her death. When she was 85 years old, she begins to engage in politics and becomes a member of Women democratic party. She was the first woman in Croatia who lived solely from writing books. She printed and sold, and even illustrated, some of the books.
Bibliography
She wrote over 70 books of poetry and prose, 4 dramas which were performed in theatres, anthologies of aphorisms, satire and large number of children’s books. From 1945. she publishes poems in magazines and newspapers. She published her first song in “Guardian angel” journal. She translated Heine, Goethe and Rilke. She translated from french, german and Bulgarian.
Poetry
"Dawns and gales", 1947.,
"Songs", 1948.,
"Black olive", 1955.,
"Faithful to the otters", 1957.,
"Ропство", 1957.,
"Let me rest", 1958.,
"You and never", 1959.,
"Coral returned to the sea", 1959.,
"Horseman", 1961.,
"Јао јутро", 1963.,
"I used to be a boy", 1963.,
"The wind of Trakia", 1964.,
"Songs", 1964.,
"Gong", 1966.,
"Open doors", 1968.,
"Cursed rain", 1969.,
"By the tail of Magda Isanos", 1971.,
"Hundreds of sonnets", 1972.,
"And I pass by life", 1972.,
"I am ashamed to die", 1974.,
"Lead pigeon", 1975.,
"Apocalyptic", 1976.,
"Love white bone", 1978.,
"Reader of dreams 1978.,
"Chosen songs", 1979.,
"Little Magda", 1979.,
"Sound of wings, sound of water", 1981.,
"Салто мортале", 1981.,
"Chosen works", 1982.,
"City on Durmitor", 1988.,
"Land of kasfalpir", 1989.,
"Indigo city", 1990.,
"Sonnet wreaths", 1991.,
"Tripod that walks", 1993.,
"Enchanted enchantress", 1993.,
"Selection from works", 1995.,
"Bird of time", 1996.,
"Laughter stronger than death", 1997.,
"Absinthe fables", 1998.,
"Little sponge and sponge", 1999.,
"Political Valentine", 2000.,
"Sin of death",2000..
Prose
"Under male umbrella", 1987.,
"Blood of the witness", 1988.,
"Croatian queen", 1999.,
"Night for malice – my life in 40 sacks", 2001.
Children poetry
"Golden duck", 1957.,
"Grief and joy of the forest", 1958.,
"Wise rabbit", 1958.,
"Turtle’s shell", 1958.,
"Tomcat Genghis Khan и Mickey Tracy", 1968.,
"Tomcat on the moon", 1969.,
"Mickey Tracy and grandmother Pim Granny", 1968.,
"Mickey the famous captain", 1970.,
"Carnival in Kukljica", 1974.,
"Acquaintance with days of little Maxim", 1974.,
"Games before storm", 1979.,
"Twelve picture books about dogs", 1983.,
"I want buttercup, not poppy", 1983.,
"Stork in school", 1988.,
"By Kupa when sparrows gather", 1989.,
"My friend the bat", 1990.,
"Lullaby for a kiss", 1995.,
"Through the window of winter", 1995.,
"Bee, rainbow and mill", 1997.,
"Three sea adventurers", 2000.,
"Sea carriage", 2001.
Dramas (performed)
"Maria and the sailor",
"Apsirthe",
"Donkey island, or homo homini asinus",
"School for the tramps".
You who has the hands more innocent than mine
You who has hands more innocent than mine
and who is wise like carelessness
You who can read from his forehead
his loneliness better than me
and who removes slow shadows
of indecision from his face
like how spring wind removes
shadows of the clouds sailing above the hill
If your hug encourages the heart
and your thighs stop the pain
if your name is a rest
to his thoughts, and your throat
the shade to his bed
and the night of your voice an orchard
to storms yet untouched
Then stay by him
and be more faithful than those
who loved him before you
Fear the echoes that are approaching
the innocent beds of love
And be gentle to his dream
under invisible mountain
on edge of roaring sea
Composition on verses of Vesna Parun
For her most famous song “You who has the hands more innocent than mine”, Zvonko Šišić had written a song for Zagreb fest in 1964, and it was sung by Ana Štefok. Characters from her children books starred in the musical “Tomcat Genghis Khan and Mickey Tracy”, and the music for this show was written by Ladislav Tulač and produced by Zvjedana Ladika in 1979. According to the lines of Vesna Parun, Stanko Horvat had written “Sound of wings, sound of water”, a cantata for soprano and orchestra where the soprano was sung by Dunja Vejzović. Kemal Monteno and Din sung the poem “Frozen fountain”, for which, according to lines of Vesna Parun, Stipica Kalo]era wrote the music and the arrangement.
Awards
She got these awards:
Award of Matica Hrvatska
Award of the year
Award of Zagreb city
Award “Grigor Vitez”
“Dragon award” of Matica srpska in Novi Sad
Diploma for poetry in Paris
Award for work of the year
European award for poetry awarded by Literary municipality Vršac
Award “Tin Ujević”
Award “Vladimir Nazor”
Street
By the decision of defining names and name changes of streets on city municipality Surčin territory, published in official journal of Belgrade city n.40 from 23. September 2011, to the street which starts in New street 5, 2nd approach to the right, starting from registered land n. 4954/1 in cadastar municipality is treated as a field or a 4th class land in construction area without data on buildings and other constructed objects on this part of the land (data from http://katastar.rgz.gov.rs/KnWebPublic/FindParcelaResult.aspx visited on 4th March 2017.)
Outside links
http://www.danas.rs/danasrs/dijalog/licnost_danas_vesna_parun.46.html?news_id=200019
http://www.politika.rs/scc/clanak/153717/Umrla-pesnikinja-Vesna-Parun
http://www.jutarnji.hr/kultura/knjizevnost/vesna-parun-zivjela-je-protiv-svih-konvencija-i-silno-zudjela-za-ljubavlju/1888791/
http://www.mojevrijeme.hr/magazin/2014/04/vesna-parun-bila-sam-majka-zena-i-ljubavnica-kuharica-i-sluskinja/
Frozen fountain: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sJ6qrzLFUws
You whose hands are more innocent than mine:
https://wn.com/in_memoriam_vesna_parun_vrata_ru%C5%BEa_ana_%C5%A0tefok
