H. C. Artmann
H. C. Artmann was an influential Austrian poet and a pivotal figure in the revival of avant-garde literature during the 1950s, particularly within the café society of Vienna. Born on June 12, 1921, in St. Achatz am Walde, he faced a challenging upbringing and limited formal education. Artmann's experiences as a soldier in World War II and his subsequent work as a translator for Allied troops deeply shaped his literary perspectives. He became known for his experimental poetry, which drew inspiration from various traditional forms, including Japanese haikus and medieval ballads, while reflecting on Austria's grappling with its fascist past.
By 1953, Artmann emerged as a leading member of the Vienna Group, a literary collective that sought to explore the complexities of the German language and its dialects. His notable work, "Med ana schwoazzn dintn," published in 1957, showcased Viennese characters through a satirical lens, blending humor with critique. Artmann's literary contributions earned him acclaim, including multiple prestigious awards, and he became recognized for his theatrical public performances across Europe. His legacy is marked by intricate language experiments and a profound engagement with the moral challenges faced by his generation after World War II, making his work both a celebration of linguistic creativity and a poignant reflection on historical trauma. Artmann passed away on December 4, 2000, leaving behind a rich and complex body of work.
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Subject Terms
H. C. Artmann
Writer
- Born: June 12, 1921
- Birthplace: St. Achatz am Walde, Austria
- Died: December 4, 2000
- Place of death: Vienna, Austria
Biography
Hans Carl Artmann was the charismatic architect of a revival of avant-garde experimental literature centered in the café society of Vienna in the 1950’s. Born into a working-class family on June 12, 1921, in St. Achatz am Walde, Austria, Artmann was raised in Vienna. Receiving only eight years of formal education, he worked for a time as a clerk until he was conscripted into the Austrian army. Wounded in action along the Eastern front, he served as a translator for Allied troops, work that reflected Artmann’s long interest with languages. After the war, Artmann began to publish, initially in newspapers but ultimately finding his voice in experimental poems in the avant-garde spirit of the Dadaist movement of a generation earlier. These poems drew on conventional forms, such as Japanese haiku and medieval ballads. He quickly moved to the forefront of a group of writers who struggled with the burden of Austria’s participation in the rise of fascism. Suspicious of political agendas and convinced of the brutality at the heart of civilization, Artmann encouraged these writers to focus rather on form and language, on verbal experiments, and on revitalizing obscure literary models.
By 1953, he would become the leading light of the Vienna Group, a literary society that established as its agenda the investigation of the German language itself, exploring its long evolution as well as its scores of rural and urban dialects. That involvement led to Artmann’s most celebrated work, 1957’s Med ana schwoazzn dintn, in which a gallery of Viennese characters are rendered in harsh dialects, a satiric treatment that defines Artmann’s avant-garde spirit and his willingness to provoke. Ironically, the volume itself was widely embraced as a gentle evocation of the very people Artmann was satirizing. As a result of the volume’s popularity, Artmann traveled Europe for most of the 1960’s—he left Austria in 1960 during an alimony fight and would not return until 1970— performing extravagant, theatrical public readings, often in costume. His own work turned to a series of widely popular translations, including the works of François Villon, Molière, and Lope de Vega, energetic translations often marked by Artmann’s own stylistic sensibilities. His other works during the decade reflected his wide range of genre interests. Artmann would work well into his seventies. His work was recognized with the Austrian State Prize for Literature in 1960 and in 1974 as well as the Prize for Literature of the City of Vienna in 1977. He died of a heart attack on December 4, 2000. The intricacy of his language experiments, the nuances of his trenchant satire, and his involved wordplay make translation of his material a difficult enterprise. Nevertheless, Artmann’s work gave voice to his troubled generation’s adjustments to the moral trauma of World War II by advocating the disciplining of poetry into the fundamentals of language, by reanimating exotic forms, and by audaciously manipulating genre conventions.