Lakhasly

Career Simic began to make a name for himself in the early to mid-1970s as a literary minimalist, writing terse, imagistic poems.[4] Critics have referred to Simic's poems as "tightly constructed Chinese puzzle boxes". He himself stated: "Words make love on the page like flies in the summer heat and the poet is merely the bemused spectator."[5]

He was a professor of American literature and creative writing at University of New Hampshire beginning in 1973[6][7] and lived in Strafford, New Hampshire.[8] Simic wrote on such diverse topics as jazz, art, and philosophy.[9] He was influenced by Emily Dickinson, Pablo Neruda, and Fats Waller.[10] He was a translator, essayist, and philosopher, opining on the current state of contemporary American poetry.He received the US$100,000 Wallace Stevens Award in 2007 from the Academy of American Poets.[12]

Simic was selected by James Billington, Librarian of Congress, to be the fifteenth Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress, succeeding Donald Hall.

Career
Simic began to make a name for himself in the early to mid-1970s as a literary minimalist, writing terse, imagistic poems.[4] Critics have referred to Simic's poems as "tightly constructed Chinese puzzle boxes". He himself stated: "Words make love on the page like flies in the summer heat and the poet is merely the bemused spectator."[5]

He was a professor of American literature and creative writing at University of New Hampshire beginning in 1973[6][7] and lived in Strafford, New Hampshire.[8] Simic wrote on such diverse topics as jazz, art, and philosophy.[9] He was influenced by Emily Dickinson, Pablo Neruda, and Fats Waller.[10] He was a translator, essayist, and philosopher, opining on the current state of contemporary American poetry. He held the position of poetry editor of The Paris Review and was later replaced by Dan Chiasson. He was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Letters in 1995, received the Academy Fellowship in 1998, and was elected a chancellor of the Academy of American Poets in 2000.[11]

Simic was one of the judges for the 2007 Griffin Poetry Prize and continued to contribute poetry and prose to The New York Review of Books. He received the US$100,000 Wallace Stevens Award in 2007 from the Academy of American Poets.[12]

Simic was selected by James Billington, Librarian of Congress, to be the fifteenth Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress, succeeding Donald Hall. In choosing Simic as the poet laureate, Billington cited "the rather stunning and original quality of his poetry".[13]

In 2011, Simic was the recipient of the Frost Medal, presented annually for "lifetime achievement in poetry".[14]

Simic's extensive papers as well as other material about his work are held at the University of New Hampshire Library Milne Special Collections and Archives.[15]

Personal life and death
Simic married fashion designer Helene Dubin in 1964, and their union produced two children. In 1971, he became an American citizen.[16] Simic died of complications of dementia on January 9, 2023, at age 84.[17][18]