In memoriam: recently deceased prominent writers and artists (12/04/05)

In memoriam: recently deceased prominent writers and artists

The last few months have seen the passing of the following Ukrainian writers and artists whose work marked a significant contribution to Ukrainian culture.

Roman Babowal - Ukrainian Belgian poet, a member of the New York Group and author of many books of poetry in Ukrainian and French, among them "The Deceit of Milk," "Letters to Lovers," and "Travelers of the Probable." He also compiled and implemented on the Internet "A Virtual Anthology of the Poetry of the New York Group." Mr. Babowal died on June 15 in Mintigny-le-Tilleul, Belgium. He is survived by his wife and daughter.
Valeriy Illya - author of a number of books of poetry, including "Blacksmiths in the Fog "and "Svarha." In the 1990s he edited the literary journal Osnova. Mr. Illya died in Kyiv on July 27. He is survived by his wife, the poet Valentyna Otroshchenko, and son.
Viktor Kordun - member of the so-called Kyiv School of Poets, longtime vice secretary of the Writers' Association of Ukraine, and editor of the journal Svitovyd. His many books of poetry include "Slavia," "Solstice" and "Wintry Sound of the Woodpecker." Mr. Kordun died in Kyiv on September 3. He is survived by his wife, the writer Tetyana Kaunova, son, daughter and granddaughter.
Anatole Fourmanchouk - Ukrainian American stage director. Mr. Fourmanchouk studied at the Karpenko-Karyi Institute in Kyiv and Rada in Moscow, and directed some 70 productions in many countries, including Ukraine, Russia, Spain and the United States. He moved to the United States in 1995 and taught acting at the Michael Howard Studio in Manhattan, where he staged Edward Albee's "Counting the Ways." (See the review in The Ukrainian Weekly, March 23.) In New York, he also founded New York Art Theater, where he staged "The Idiot" based on the Dostoyevsky novel, and Tennessee Williams' "Something Cloudy, Something Clear." His staging of "Metamorphoses," consisting of Samuel Beckett's "All that Fall" and Eugene Ionesco's "The Picture," is still being performed at the Theater for Young Audiences in Kyiv. Mr. Fourmanchouk died on November 7 in Jersey City, N.J. He is survived by his companion, the actor Stass Klassen, and two sons.

- Yuri Tarnavsky

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