Adrian Matejka
Adrian Matejka | |
|---|---|
Matejka at AWP 2026 | |
| Born | 1971 (age 54–55) Nuremberg, Germany |
| Occupation | Poet, editor |
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | Indiana University Bloomington (BA) Southern Illinois University Carbondale (MFA) |
| Genre | Poetry |
| Notable works | The Big Smoke |
| Notable awards | Anisfield-Wolf Book Award Guggenheim Fellowship |
Adrian Matejka (born 1971)[1] is an American poet and editor. He is the editor-in-chief of Poetry magazine, a position he has held since 2022.[2][3] He is the author of six poetry collections and the graphic novel Last on His Feet: Jack Johnson and the Battle of the Century.[4] His poetry collection The Big Smoke won the Anisfield-Wolf Book Award and was a finalist for the National Book Award for Poetry and the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry.[5] Matejka served as Indiana poet laureate from 2018 to 2019.[6]
Life
Matejka was born in Nuremberg, Germany, in 1971 and grew up in California and Indianapolis, Indiana.[1][7] He received a BA from Indiana University Bloomington in 1995 and an MFA from SIU in 2001.[1]
Matejka's third collection, The Big Smoke, is about the boxer Jack Johnson.[8] The book was a finalist for the 2013 National Book Award for Poetry and the 2014 Pulitzer Prize for Poetry, and won a 2014 Anisfield-Wolf Book Award.[8][9][10]
Matejka has taught literature and creative writing at Indiana University Bloomington.[7] He served as Indiana poet laureate from 2018 to 2019.[6] In 2022, he became editor-in-chief of Poetry magazine. The Poetry Foundation described him as the first Black editor to lead the magazine.[3]
Honors and awards
- 2003: New York/New England Award for The Devil's Garden.[7]
- 2008: National Poetry Series, for Mixology.[11]
- 2011: Lannan Foundation residency.[12]
- 2013: National Book Award for Poetry finalist, for The Big Smoke.[8]
- 2014: Anisfield-Wolf Book Award, for The Big Smoke.[10]
- 2014: Hurston/Wright Legacy Award finalist, for The Big Smoke.[13]
- 2014: Pulitzer Prize for Poetry finalist, for The Big Smoke.[9]
- 2014: Guggenheim Fellowship in poetry.[14]
- 2014: Lannan Literary Fellowship for poetry.[12]
- 2015: United States Artists fellowship.[15]
- 2015: Eugene and Marilyn Glick Indiana Authors Award regional award.[16]
- 2019: Academy of American Poets Laureate Fellowship.[17]
- 2019: National Endowment for the Arts creative writing fellowship in poetry.[13]
- 2022: UNT Rilke Prize finalist, for Somebody Else Sold the World.[18]
- 2022: Indiana Authors Award poetry shortlist, for Somebody Else Sold the World.[16]
Other honors include a Pushcart Prize, the Julia Peterkin Award, two Illinois Arts Council Literary Awards, a Cave Canem fellowship, a Rockefeller Foundation fellowship, and a Civitella Ranieri Foundation fellowship.[7][19][15]
Works
Poetry collections
- The Devil's Garden. Alice James Books. 2003. ISBN 9781882295418.[20]
- Mixology. Penguin Books. 2009. ISBN 9780143115830.[21]
- The Big Smoke. Penguin Books. 2013. ISBN 9780143123729.[22]
- Map to the Stars. Penguin Books. 2017. ISBN 9780143130574.[23]
- Somebody Else Sold the World. Penguin Books. 2021. ISBN 9780143136446.[24]
- Be Easy: New and Selected Poems. Liveright. 2026. ISBN 9781324097501.[25]
Graphic nonfiction
- Last on His Feet: Jack Johnson and the Battle of the Century, with Youssef Daoudi. Liveright. 2023. ISBN 9781631495588.[26]
Anthology contributions
- "Understanding Al Green", in Toi Derricotte, Cornelius Eady and Camille T. Dungy, eds., Gathering Ground: A Reader Celebrating Cave Canem's First Decade. University of Michigan Press. 2006. ISBN 9780472069248.[27]
References
- ^ a b c "Adrian Matejka". Academy of American Poets. Retrieved May 5, 2026.
- ^ "Our Team". Poetry Foundation. Retrieved May 5, 2026.
- ^ a b "Adrian Matejka Joins Poetry Magazine as New Editor". Poetry Foundation. April 26, 2022. Retrieved May 5, 2026.
- ^ Graham, Evangeline Riddiford (March 31, 2026). "Ten Questions for Adrian Matejka". Poets & Writers. Retrieved May 5, 2026.
- ^ "The Big Smoke". Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards. Retrieved May 5, 2026.; "The Big Smoke". National Book Foundation. Retrieved May 5, 2026.; "The Big Smoke, by Adrian Matejka (Penguin)". The Pulitzer Prizes. Retrieved May 5, 2026.
- ^ a b "Indiana Poet Laureate". Indiana Arts Commission. State of Indiana. Retrieved May 5, 2026.
- ^ a b c d "Adrian Matejka". Poetry Foundation. Retrieved May 5, 2026.
- ^ a b c "The Big Smoke". National Book Foundation. Retrieved May 5, 2026.
- ^ a b "The Big Smoke, by Adrian Matejka (Penguin)". The Pulitzer Prizes. Retrieved May 5, 2026.
- ^ a b "The Big Smoke". Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards. Retrieved May 5, 2026.
- ^ "Mixology". National Poetry Series. Retrieved May 5, 2026.
- ^ a b "Adrian Matejka". Lannan Foundation. Retrieved May 5, 2026.
- ^ a b "Adrian Matejka". National Endowment for the Arts. Retrieved May 5, 2026.
- ^ "Adrian Matejka". John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation. Retrieved May 5, 2026.
- ^ a b "Adrian Matejka". United States Artists. Retrieved May 5, 2026.
- ^ a b "Adrian Matejka". Indiana Authors Awards. Retrieved May 5, 2026.
- ^ "Poet Laureate of Indiana". Academy of American Poets. Retrieved May 5, 2026.
- ^ "Belarusian poet named winner of UNT's 2022 Rilke Prize". University of North Texas. April 12, 2022. Retrieved May 5, 2026.
- ^ "Adrian Matejka". Illinois Poet Laureate. State of Illinois. Retrieved May 5, 2026.
- ^ "The Devil's Garden". Alice James Books. Retrieved May 5, 2026.
- ^ "Mixology by Adrian Matejka". PenguinRandomHouse.com. Penguin Random House. Retrieved May 5, 2026.
- ^ "The Big Smoke by Adrian Matejka". PenguinRandomHouse.com. Penguin Random House. Retrieved May 5, 2026.
- ^ "Map to the Stars by Adrian Matejka". PenguinRandomHouse.com. Penguin Random House. Retrieved May 5, 2026.
- ^ "Somebody Else Sold the World by Adrian Matejka". PenguinRandomHouse.com. Penguin Random House. Retrieved May 5, 2026.
- ^ "Be Easy". W. W. Norton & Company. Retrieved May 5, 2026.
- ^ "Last on His Feet: Jack Johnson and the Battle of the Century". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved May 5, 2026.
- ^ "Gathering Ground: A Reader Celebrating Cave Canem's First Decade". Anthologies of African American Writing. George Mason University. Retrieved May 5, 2026.