Jüri Kolk
Jüri Kolk (born 19 July 1972) is a poet, prose writer and translator.
Kolk studied Estonian philology at the University of Tartu and worked in various jobs, for example, at a brewery, at a translation bureau and as a journalist. He was a member of Estonian Writers’ Union (from 2014-2021) and Tartu Young Authors’ Association.
Kolk, who is writing mainly in free verse, made his debut in 2009 with the poetry collection Barbar Conan peeglitagusel maal (ja mis ta seal rääkis) (‘Barbarian Conan in the Land behind the Looking-glass (and What He Spoke There)’). Starting with his first collection, Kolk has been noted for his frequent use of puns and intertextuality, intertwining fragments from different sources. The characteristic features of his poetry are unexpected turns and seeing the world from a novel angle. He writes on general human themes depicting the world of everyday life, which is also the foregrounded theme in his prose. In the short prose with a chatty undertone, the narrator is usually a male character whose usually casual reflections can reach quite a different level as the story develops, like it happens, for example, in the collection Naistepäev (‘Women’s Day’, 2017) where also the story Sünnimärk (‘Birth Mark’) was published, which won the Friedebert Tuglas Short Story Prize in 2016.
The collection of articles Argitraagikaid ja teisi artikleid (‘Everyday Tragedies and Other Articles’, 2021) includes articles published in the press during a decade; several of them focus on the coping and position of creative personalities. Like in his prose, here too, he stands out with lengthier reflections.
In 2015 he received the Juhan Liiv Poetry Prize for Arno apooria (‘Arno’s Aporia’) and in 2016 the Gustav Suits Poetry Prize for Mee lakkumine ei ole meelakkumine (‘Licking of Honey Isn’t Honeylicking’, 2015). In 2019 he received the Estonian Cultural Endowment Scholarship Ela ja sära (‘Live and Shine’).
A. K. (Translated by I. A.)
Books in Estonian
Novels
Roheline suits. Tallinn: Post Factum, 2017, 171 lk.
Poetry collections
Barbar Conan peeglitagusel maal (ja mis ta seal rääkis). Tartu: Võluri Tagasitulek, 2009, 94 lk.
Jää on paksem kui veri. Pärnu, Saarde: Jumalikud Ilmutused, 2011, 113 lk.
Seitse surmavoorust. Saarde, Pärnu: Jumalikud Ilmutused, 2013, 104 lk.
Ära mine valguse poole. Saarde, Pärnu: Jumalikud Ilmutused, 2013, 104 lk.
Otse aia taga. Saarde, Pärnu: Jumalikud Ilmutused, 2014, 109 lk.
Mee lakkumine pole meelakkumine. Saarde, Pärnu: Jumalikud Ilmutused, 2015, 91 lk.
Igapidi üks õnn ja rõõm. Tallinn: Eesti Keele Sihtasutus, 2016, 98 lk.
Kuu ja kirves. Tallinn: Kingitud Hobune, 2017, 52 lk.
Laskmata karu peied. Tallinn: Kingitud Hobune, 2019, 73 lk.
Short stories
Teisipäevamaa. Saarde, Pärnu: Jumalikud Ilmutused, 2014,169 lk.
Suur võidujooks. Tallinn: Tuum, 2015, 191 lk.
Naistepäev. Tallinn: Kingitud Hobune, 2017, 160 lk.
Esimene malbe päev sel aastal. Loomingu Raamatukogu nr 25. Tallinn: Kultuurileht, 2018, 79 lk.
Varia
Argitraagikaid ja teisi artikleid: artikleid aastatest 2010-2020. Tallinn: EKSA, 2021, 216 lk.
