THanasis K. Kostavaras

Thanasis Kostavaras (1927 - 2007). Thanasis Kostavaras, a poet of the first post-war generation, was born in Anakasia, Volos, where he spent his childhood and school years. At the age of fifteen, he joined the Greek People's Liberation Army (ELAS) as a member of the youth organization EPON. In 1944, he was injured in a battle with the Germans. After the war, he moved to Athens and enrolled in the Dental School of the University of Athens in 1946. In November 1948, he was exiled to Makronisos, where he remained for four years. Upon his release, he completed his studies and began working as a dentist. He made his literary debut in 1956 with the publication of the poetry collection "Search." He wrote a total of twenty poetry collections ("Revival," 1957, "Exit," 1957, "Concerto for Cyclamens and Orchestra of Hours," 1958, "Greek Suite," 1959, "The Return," 1963, "Deposition," 1965, "Supplements," 1970, "The Mute Singer," "Stories," 1985, "The Erotic," "The Acrobat's Fear," 1989, "Gardens in Paradise," 1990, "In the Depth of Color," 1993, "The Diary of Tomorrow's Exile," 1995, "The Distant Unknown Country," 1999, "The Transformations of Gardens," 2003, among others), with the last one dedicated to the loss of his wife, essayist Angeliki Kostavara, with whom he had a son. He also wrote essays, short stories (the collections "The Crack," 1966, and "The Pit," 1972), and plays ("The Bassoon or The Tragic End of Nikephoros Phokas" and "The Heroic Life of P. N. Pasti"), which were staged by "Twelfth Curtain" (1960) and the "Art Theatre" during the 1977-78 season, while "The Sacred and the Profane" was presented in November 1983 by ET1. He was a member of the editorial board of the magazine "Mandragoras." Tributes to his work were published in magazines such as "Eli-Trochos," (issue 3, 2001), "Mandragoras," (issue 25, July 2001), "Literature Topics," and others. His works have been translated into English, French, Polish, and German. He passed away in Athens on October 19, 2007. For more biographical details on Thanasis Kostavaras, see Alex Argyriou, "Thanasis Kostavaras," in "The First Post-War Generation," Athens: Sokolis, 1982 (in the series "Greek Poetry. Anthology - Literature") and Loula Kotsetsou, "Kostavaras Thanasis," in "The Great Encyclopedia of Modern Greek Literature," vol. 9, Athens: Haris Patsis, n.d. (Source: Archive of Greek Authors, EKEBI, and poeticanet.com)