Karl Gunnar Harding (born 11 June 1940) is a Swedish poet, novelist, essayist and translator, considered 'one of Sweden's foremost poets'.[1] Among his other poetry collections is Starnberger See from 1977. Among his novels is Luffaren Svarta Hästen from 1977. He published the children's book Mannen och paraplyet in 1990.[2] He was awarded the Dobloug Prize in 2011.[3]
Biography
Gunnar Harding was born in Sundsvall and brought up in Bromma as the son of the doctor Gösta Harding. He studied painting in Stockholm and was a jazz musician before making his literary debut in 1967 with Lokomotivet som frös fast. During his early career, Harding travelled extensively in America, and this influenced his work.[4]
Harding is noted primarily for his poetry (mostly in free verse but also significant prose-poetry). Alongside this, he has written essays, a book about the origins of jazz called Kreol, and a few stories.[5]
He has also worked as an editor, for Lyrikvännen ('poetry-lover') 1971–1974, for Artes for many years, and for Artes International during its five-year run.[6] He has been a member of the Samfundet De Nio (chair number 5) since 1993[7] and served on the 1973 Swedish Bible committion 1981–1989.[8]
Harding's literary significance is partly as an introducer of foreign modernism, especially French, American and British poetry, into Swedish literature.
Harding also takes a lively interest in jazz and likes to read his poetry with jazz as background music.
Bibliography
Literary writing
1967 – Lokomotivet som frös fast
1968 – Den svenske cyklistens sång
1969 – Blommor till James Dean
1970 – Örnen har landat
1971 – Guillaume Apollinaires fantastiska liv
1972 – Skallgång
1974 – Poesi 1967–1973
1975 – Ballader
1977 – Starnberger See
1977 – Luffaren Svarta Hästen och det hemska rånmordet i Leksand
2012 – John Donne: Skabrösa elegier och heliga sonetter (Ellerströms)
Translations of Harding's work into English
1970 – The Fabulous Life of Guillaume Apollinaire, trans. by Sydney Bernard Smith (Iowa City: Windhover, 1970; Dublin: Raven Arts, 1982) [part of Guillaume Apollinaires fantastiska liv]
1973 – They Killed Sitting Bull and Other Poems, trans. by Robin Fulton (London: Magazine Editions) [a selection of 25 early poems], repr. with additional translations by Anselm Hollo as Tidewater (Grosse Pointe Farms, MI: Marick Press, 2009)
2014 – Gunnar Harding, Guarding the Air: Selected Poems of Gunnar Harding, ed. and trans. by Roger Greenwald (Boston, MA: Black Widow Press) [selected poems]
Anthologies
1979 – Modern Swedish Poetry in Translation, with Anselm Hollo
Discography
Jazz och Poesi - Gunnar Harding och Sumpens Swingsters (LP with text volume, 1982)
^Roger Greenwald, 'Introduction', in Gunnar Harding, Guarding the Air: Selected Poems of Gunnar Harding, ed. and trans. by Roger Greenwald (Boston, MA: Black Widow Press, 2014), p. 13.
^Roger Greenwald, 'Introduction', in Gunnar Harding, Guarding the Air: Selected Poems of Gunnar Harding, ed. and trans. by Roger Greenwald (Boston, MA: Black Widow Press, 2014), p. 13.
^Roger Greenwald, 'Introduction', in Gunnar Harding, Guarding the Air: Selected Poems of Gunnar Harding, ed. and trans. by Roger Greenwald (Boston, MA: Black Widow Press, 2014), p. 13.
^Roger Greenwald, 'Introduction', in Gunnar Harding, Guarding the Air: Selected Poems of Gunnar Harding, ed. and trans. by Roger Greenwald (Boston, MA: Black Widow Press, 2014), p. 13.
^Roger Greenwald, 'Introduction', in Gunnar Harding, Guarding the Air: Selected Poems of Gunnar Harding, ed. and trans. by Roger Greenwald (Boston, MA: Black Widow Press, 2014), p. 13.
