Attilio Bertolucci

Attilio Bertolucci (1911-2000) is one of the outstanding Italian poets of the 20th century. His work is noted for its directness and narrative interest, in sharp distinction to the hermetic tradition of his day. Born in Parma, he began writing early and published Sirio [ Sirius ], a small collection of twenty-seven poems set in his native region, at the age of 18. From 1931 to 1935, he studied law at the local university, meanwhile publishing another collection, Fuochi in novembre [ Fires in...See more

Attilio Bertolucci (1911-2000) is one of the outstanding Italian poets of the 20th century. His work is noted for its directness and narrative interest, in sharp distinction to the hermetic tradition of his day. Born in Parma, he began writing early and published Sirio [ Sirius ], a small collection of twenty-seven poems set in his native region, at the age of 18. From 1931 to 1935, he studied law at the local university, meanwhile publishing another collection, Fuochi in novembre [ Fires in November ], in 1934. From 1935 to 1938, he completed studies at the University of Bologna, after which he began teaching art history, all the while writing and contributing poems to literary journals. Moving to Rome in 1951, he published La capanna indiana [ The Indian Hut ], which won the prestigeous Premio Viareggio the same year. His next book of poetry, Viaggio d'inverno [WINTER JOURNEY (Parlor Press, 2005], appeared in 1971. Beginning in 1975, he headed the literary review Nuovi Argomenti [ New Arguments ], together with Enzo Siciliano and Alberto Moravia. The narrative poem La camera da letto [THE BEDROOM (Chelsea Editions, 2012)] appeared in 1984. Revised and expanded in 1988, it won the author a second Premio Viareggio. Bertolucci's other books of poetry are La lucertola di Casarola [ The Lizard of Casarola ] and Opere [ Works ], both in 1997. Bertolucci also wrote literary criticism and translated from French and English--works by Honoré de Balzac, Charles Baudelaire, Thomas Hardy, D. H. Lawrence and others. His sons Bernardo and Giuseppe are famous film directors. See less