In 2015, the Academy published Ekelöf's entire 14 poetry collections in a critical edition in two volumes. But for such a productive poet, the selection was actually quite strict, thinks Academy member Anders Olsson, professor of literature who has written several theses and books about Ekelöf.
Now we decided to gather everything. It was completely overwhelming to see how much he had written and what quality it holds, he says.
Ekelöf wanted a poetry collection to be uniform and chose to leave out everything that did not fit in. Throughout his authorship, there is a tension between the unprocessed and the composed, emphasizes Olsson. Ekelöf had a range from "anti-poetry", as in "Strountes" to large poem suites based on Byzantine epic, as in the "Diwan" poetry, but at the same time you recognize his tone.
It's something he's still true to throughout his entire life, despite having so many strings on his lyre.
Wrote his life
Anders Olsson also found new nuggets and thinks that the image of the poet now deepens. It becomes even clearer how Ekelöf all the time wrote his life, from his deepest experiences. He made poetry out of everything, says Anders Olsson.
He's a wizard to me. He had a troublesome life, outside of society, and lived under very difficult conditions many times. He managed to make something fantastic out of it and that must be inspiring for everyone.
Ekelöf wanted to write "directly from life", and became enormously interested in how the philosopher Emanuel Swedenborg noted his dreams in a "Dream Book".
It was a prose text, but Ekelöf saw it as the first attempt at modern poetry. For him, the way of writing was enormously inspiring, says Anders Olsson and mentions that Ekelöf held Edith Södergran just as high.
Lives on
One of Ekelöf's poems is included in the cultural canon, "Eufori". Anders Olsson read it already in high school. Himself, he suggests starting with the Diwan poetry and the collection "Färjesång", to get "the whole Ekelöf".
He also emphasizes that the poet lives on in his own strength. Young people in constantly new generations and people from other countries are drawn to Ekelöf.
Because he stands beyond all fixed boundaries, both politically and ideologically.
Elin Swedenmark/TT
Facts: Gunnar Ekelöf
TT
Born in Stockholm. Was active as an author, poet and translator and was also a member of the Swedish Academy from 1958. He was also known as an essayist and critic, and introduced, among other things, French surrealists such as Arthur Rimbaud to Swedish.
Debuted in 1932 with the poetry collection "Sent på jorden" and had his breakthrough in 1941 with the poetry collection "Färjesång". Other well-known collections are "Non serviam" (1945), "Strountes" (1955) and "En Mölna-elegi. Metamorfoser" (1960).
Late in life, he was strongly influenced by Eastern mysticism and Byzantine history, and wrote the "Diwan trilogy", which includes "Diwan över fursten av Emghión" (1965), "Sagan om Fatumeh" (1966) and "Vägvisare till underjorden" (1967).
In 1989, the Gunnar Ekelöf Society was formed to promote interest in Ekelöf's poetry.
"Document"
I dared to look up at the picture of you
I dared to stretch out my hand
to pray for mercy
Then I bowed my head
and from the picture
your hand stretched out
took me by the hair
and shook my head
I understood: I was not allowed to wish
more than I was allowed
I would like to describe
what I wished
I saw that you had regained your unchanging smile
and your power over me
I lay all my wishes
at the foot of your picture
like a broken little wooden box
