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Adrian Matejka

エイドリアン・マテイカ

Adrian Matejka

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
Nuremberg, Germany
Nationality
United States
Languages
English
Residence History
Indianapolis, Indiana (raised) → Bloomington, Indiana (residence/employment)

Career

Occupations
Poet, Author, University professor, Editor
Active Years
2000-
Affiliations
Indiana University (faculty), Editor of Poetry magazine (since 2022)
Influenced By
Toi Derricotte, Cornelius Eady

Education

Indiana University Bloomington
College of Arts and Sciences / English / Creative Writing
Degree: BA
Country: United States
Southern Illinois University, Carbondale
College of Fine Arts / Creative Writing (MFA)
Degree: MFA
Country: United States
MFA in Creative Writing (Poetry)

Awards

New York / New England Award
2002
Work: The Devil's Garden
Result: Winner
National Poetry Series
2008
Work: Mixology
Organization: National Poetry Series
Result: Winner
Lannan Foundation Residency Fellowship
2011
Organization: Lannan Foundation
Result: Fellowship
National Book Award (Poetry)
2013
Work: The Big Smoke
Category: 詩
Organization: National Book Foundation
Result: Finalist
Pulitzer Prize for Poetry
2014
Work: The Big Smoke
Category: 詩
Organization: The Pulitzer Prizes
Result: Finalist
Anisfield-Wolf Book Award
2014
Work: The Big Smoke
Organization: Anisfield-Wolf Foundation
Result: Winner
Guggenheim Fellowship
2014
Organization: John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation
Result: Fellowship
Lannan Literary Fellowship
2014
Organization: Lannan Foundation
Result: Fellowship
United States Artists Simon Fellowship
2015
Organization: United States Artists
Result: Fellowship
Bellagio Foundation Residency Fellowship
2018
Organization: Bellagio Center (Rockefeller Foundation)
Result: Residency
Academy of American Poets Laureate Fellowship
2019
Organization: Academy of American Poets
Result: Fellowship
National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship
2019
Organization: National Endowment for the Arts
Result: Fellowship
Illinois Arts Council Award
2009
Organization: Illinois Arts Council
Result: Award

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

The Devil's Garden

2003 Poetry

Debut collection containing poems that explore personal and cultural experience.

personal memorycultural identity

Mixology

2009 Poetry

A collection that uses linguistic play and multiple voices.

musicurban lifelanguage

The Big Smoke

2013 Poetry (with biographical/historical elements)

An epic collection centered on the life and times of Black boxer Jack Johnson, addressing history, race, and fame.

boxingracehistory

Map to the Stars

2017 Poetry

A collection that explores personal history and cultural memory across diverse themes and forms.

memoryidentityfamily

Somebody Else Sold the World

2021 Poetry

A recent collection comprising poems that weave social and personal themes.

cultural critiqueindividual and society

Bibliography

  • The Devil's Garden (2003)
  • Mixology (2009)
  • The Big Smoke (2013)
  • Map to the Stars (2017)
  • Somebody Else Sold the World (2021)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
lyrical, speaker-focused styleexperimentation with multiple voicesepic/lyric treatment of historical material
Recurring Motifs
boxing and competitivenessmusicfamily memoryrace and American history

Legacy

Regarded as a leading contemporary American poet. His work, which centers historical subjects and Black experience, has earned major award recognition; he is also influential as an educator and editor.

Academic Societies

  • Academy of American Poets (associated)

Trivia

  • Born in Nuremberg, Germany while his family was in U.S. military service.
  • Served as Indiana State Poet Laureate for 2018–2019.
  • Named editor of Poetry magazine in 2022.