David Avidan

David Avidan
"David Avidan", painting by Yael-Shahar Sarid, 1994
Native name	דוד אבידן
Born	February 21, 1934 Tel Aviv, Israel
Died	May 11, 1995(1995-05-11) (aged 61) Tel Aviv, Israel
Alma mater	Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Occupation	Poet, painter, filmmaker, publicist, and playwright
Awards	1993 Bialik Prize for Hebrew literature

David Avidan (Hebrew: דוד אבידן) (February 21, 1934 – May 11, 1995) was an Israeli "poet, painter, filmmaker, publicist, and playwright" (as he often put it). He wrote 20 published books of Hebrew poetry.

Biography and literary career

He was born in Tel Aviv, Israel, and studied Literature and Philosophy while briefly studying at Hebrew University. He wrote mostly in Hebrew, and was an avant-garde artist throughout his life. He translated many of his own poems into English, and received several awards both as a poet and as a translator.

He was not popular with most critics or the general public throughout his life, often criticized as being egocentric, chauvinistic, and technocratic. His first book, Lipless Faucets (1954), was attacked by nearly all poetry critics; the first favorable review was by Gabriel Moked, editor of the literary quarterly Akhshav, who later became one of Avidan's closest friends.

By the early 1990s he could scarcely make a living, and his mental condition had deteriorated. Avidan died in Tel Aviv, the city which had played a central role in his life, and was, in many ways, the center of his creation.

Since his death, Avidan's reputation has been on the rise both in literary circles and in the popular imagination, positioning him as one the core poets of the Israeli canon.

Awards

In 1993, Avidan was the co-recipient (jointly with Amalia Kahana-Carmon) of the Bialik Prize for Hebrew literature.^[1]

In 2005, he was voted the 180th-greatest Israeli of all time, in a poll by the Israeli news website Ynet to determine whom the general public considered the 200 Greatest Israelis.^[2]

Books (poetry) – partial list

• Lipless Faucets, 1954
• Personal Problems, 1957
• Subtotal, 1960
• Pressure Poems, 1962
• Something for Someone, 1964
• A Book of Possibilities – Poems and More, 1985

References

1. ^ "List of Bialik Prize recipients 1933–2004 (in Hebrew), Tel Aviv Municipality website". http://www.tel-aviv.gov.il/Hebrew/_MultimediaServer/Documents/12516738.pdf. 
2. ^ גיא בניוביץ' (June 20, 1995). "הישראלי מספר 1: יצחק רבין – תרבות ובידור". Ynet. http://www.ynet.co.il/articles/0,7340,L-3083171,00.html. Retrieved July 10, 2011. 

Further reading

• The Modern Hebrew Poem Itself (2003), ISBN 0-8143-2485-1

External links

• לקסיקון הספרות העברית החדשה – דוד אבידן
• NY Times obituary, retrieved October 5, 2008

See also

• List of Bialik Prize recipients

Persondata
Name	Avidan, David
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	February 21, 1934
Place of birth	Tel Aviv, Israel
Date of death	May 11, 1995
Place of death	Tel Aviv, Israel