Jaan Malin
Jaan Malin (pseudonym Luulur, b. 30. XII 1960) is a poet, cultural events organiser and art curator, born in Tartu.
He graduated in 1979 from number 2 secondary school in Tartu and from the Tartu State University in 1990 in Estonian philology. Malin has been a member of the Estonian Writers’ Union since 1993, and of the Estonian Artists’ Union since 2016. He has published art criticism under the pseudonym Henno Väri. He is the son of the artists Ilmar Malin and Inge Malin and the brother of the artist Lea Malin.
The subject of Jaan Malin’s interest is surrealism in poetry and art. He has studied the work of Ilmar Laaban and compiled the book Magneetiline jõgi (‘Magnetic River’, 2001), a selection of Laaban’s translations, as well as Laaban’s collected poems, Sõnade sülemid, sülemite süsteemid (‘Swarms of Words, Systems of Swarms’, 2004), and a collection of palindromes, Eludrooge ego-ordule (lit. ‘Life-drugs for the Ego-order’, 2008).
Malin made his debut in 1981 with poetry in the journal Looming. His first poetry collections, Mitu ühte (‘Several Ones’, 1990), Padi südamel (‘Pillow on the Heart’, 1990) and Veel (‘Still’, 1997), contain personal lyrics with diverse influences, varied expression and an allusive style. He has published mini-prose in Looming. Malin’s surrealist mini-prose has appeared in the book Paraluulud (roughly ‘Paralyrics’, 2000). In 2010 Malin produced the collection Alati vahe: sahitud luulet 1978-2010 (‘Always a Difference: Rustled Poetry 1978-2010’). Malin has written the plays Piht (‘Confession’) and Ats. In 2010 he produced the CD ON, for which he recorded 6 of his sound-poems. In 2015 Malin’s ‘asemantic’ novel Maa ja ilm (‘Earth and Air’), consisting of meaningless combinations of letters, appeared.
From 2012 to 2019 Malin was primarily the founder and promoter of the LUUL publishing house. He has gained recognition as the initiator, main organiser and curator of the international interdisciplinary ‘Hullunud Tartu’ (‘Crazy Tartu’) festival from 2010 to 2018. Malin achieved third place in the European Poetry Slam Days in Berlin in 2009. He has performed his sound-poetry in Estonia, Finland, Sweden, Belgium, the Netherlands, Denmark, Germany, France, Romania, Portugal, Ukraine, Russia, Italy, England, Slovenia, Lithuania, Latvia and the USA.
Since 2011 Jaan Malin has been a member of the international Dadaist poetry grouping DAstrugistenDA.
L. P. (Translated by C. M.)
Books in Estonia
Poems
Mitu ühte. Tallinn: Eesti Raamat, 1990. 77 lk.
Padi südamel. Tartu: Eesti Kostabi Selts, 1990. 44 lk.
Veel. Tartu: Eesti Kirjanduse Selts, 1997. 63 lk.
Sulle: juhtumata juhuluulet. Tartu: J. Malin, 2003. 95 lk.
Alati vahe: sahitud luulet 1978–2010. Tallinn: Tuum, 2010. 192 lk.
Meile: Eesti Kirjanike Liit seisuga 1. jaanuar 2010. Tartu: Luul, 2012. 316 lk.
Prose
Paraluulud. Tartu: J. Malin, 2000. 46 lk.
Maa ja ilm. Romaan. I. Tartu: Paranoia, 2015. 157 lk.