Poet
J. Eijkelboom
J. Eijkelboom
(The Netherlands, 1926 - 2008)
© Tineke de Lange
Biography
J. Eijkelboom made his début as a poet in 1979, at the age of fifty and after a long career in journalism, with a collection entitled Wat blijft komt nooit terug (What remains is gone forever). This advanced (for a beginning poet) age was apparent in every line. These were the poems of a man chastened by experience, a man grown sad and wise.
What is perhaps most remarkable about Eijkelboom’s verse is a sense of mysticism rarely found in post-war Dutch poetry. One of his early collections is entitled De gouden man (The golden man), a reference to the Buddha, and little touches of Zen Buddhism can be found in many poems of that period. Later, the Zen Buddhism wears off, but the contemplative, introspective spirit remains. The voice in Het lied van de krekel (The cricket’s song, 1997) is unmistakably that of a man advanced in years but young at heart. The cricket is the wrinkled old man, but also the singer proclaiming a new life. Between the wisdom of old age and the fervour of youth, Eijkelboom’s poetry keeps commuting. Reviewing his collections over the years, one finds that the relative spleen of his early poems has gradually given way to the clear view. He is still a personal poet, but one increasinly looking for universal truths.
© Rob Schouten (Translated by Ko Kooman)
[J. Eijkelboom took part in the Poetry International Festival Rotterdam 2002. This text was written on that occasion.]Selected bibliography
Poetry
Wat blijft komt nooirt terug, Singel Uitgeverijen, Amsterdam, 1979
De gouden man, Singel Uitgeverijen, Amsterdam, 1982
Hora incerta, Singel Uitgeverijen, Amsterdam, 1993
Het lied van de krekel, Arbeiderspers, Amsterdam, 1996
Het arsenaal, Arbeiderspers, Amsterdam, 2000
Heden voelen mijn voeten zich goed, Arbeiderspers, Amsterdam, 2002
Binnensmonds jubelend, Arbeiderspers, Amsterdam, 2004
Een olifant met geheugenverlies, Arbeiderspers, Amsterdam, 2005
Prose
Het Krijgsbedrijf, Arbeiderspers, Amsterdam, 2000
Poems
Poems of J. Eijkelboom
Sponsors
Partners
LantarenVenster – Verhalenhuis Belvédère