ORANGE SPERM WHALES AND HERBIVOROUS CHEETAHS - ENTERING THE SPECTACULAR POETICAL WORLD OF MIROSLAV FIŠMEISTER

I have long been a fan of the poetry of Miroslav ('Mirek') Fišmeister from Brno in the Czech Republic, with whom I also share a passion for cryptozoology. I currently own no less than five of Mirek's published books of verse, which he has very kindly translated into English for me.

Reading them is like entering into a vast kaleidoscope of dazzling, multicoloured images that swirl and dance before my eyes in a profusion of never-ending, never-repeated patterns and sequences - infusing my mind with their vivid hues and captivating, lyrical word-play to conjure forth a truly magical world in which the most unexpected concepts are deftly juxtaposed, generating a limitless diversity of wholly original, unforgettable visions and dreams.

So here, to demonstrate just what I mean, is one of my particular favourites from the rich canon of Mirek's poetry, and which appears in Pieter Van Den Hoogenband (2010).


IT'S HALF PAST TEN IN TEN MINUTES

Je za deset minut půl desáté,
a všude jsou čtverce.
Už deset minut
je za deset minut půl desáté,
a něžný oranžový vorvaň
vysezený Elysejským palácem z podkladku
myslí na živé dřevce,
které ve dvou hradech z modrého mramoru
natahují hodiny, stále, stále.
Už šachovou figurku
je za deset minut půl desáté,
a býložravý gepard se žene
za antilopami tvých ňader.
Už Ganyméda
je za deset minut půl desáté.

It’s half past ten in ten minutes,
and squares are everywhere.
For ten minutes already
it’s half past ten in ten minutes,
and a gentle orange sperm whale
hatched by the Élysée Palace from a nest-egg
thinks of living lances
which, in two blue marble castles,
wind up clocks again and again.
For a chess figure already
it‘s half past ten in ten minutes,
and a herbivorous cheetah runs after
the antelopes of your breasts.
For a Ganymede already
it’s half past ten in ten minutes.


My five books of Mirek's poetry are:

Ten Stolek Je Nízk‎‎ý! [The Table is Low!] (Edice Nezavedeni, 2005).

Z (Vĕtrné Ml‎ýny, 2009).

Pieter Van Den Hoogenband (Edice H_aluze, 2010).

Šel Jsem Tím Městem... [The Town I Visited...] (Vydal Oftis Ústi nad Orlici v Roce, 2010).

Barva Času Je Žlutá [Time is Yellow] (Vetus Via, 2011).


And I am truly honoured to be one of the persons to whom Mirek has dedicated Pieter Van Den Hoogenband – thank you so much, Mirek!!

My collection of Mirek's poetry (Dr Karl Shuker)