Anne Cluysenaar facts for kids

Anne Alice Andrée Cluysenaar (born March 15, 1936 – died November 1, 2014) was a poet and writer. She was born in Brussels, Belgium but became a citizen of Ireland. Anne lived most of her life in the UK, especially in Wales. She wrote and edited many books of poetry. She was part of the famous Cluysenaar family.

Life and Creative Work

Anne Cluysenaar was born in Brussels. Her father, John Cluysenaar, was an artist. Her mother, Sybil Fitzgerald Hewat, was also a painter. Both her parents had roots in Scotland and Belgium. Anne's grandfather, André Cluysenaar, was a painter too. His grandfather was the architect Jean-Pierre Cluysenaar.

Anne and her family moved to Britain just before Second World War began. She started writing poems when she was a child. The family first lived in Somerset. Anne went to boarding schools in England and Scotland. In 1950, her family moved to Ireland.

After her parents went back to Belgium, Anne studied English and French Literature. She attended Trinity College, Dublin. In 1956, she won a special poetry prize. She graduated in 1957. In 1961, she became an Irish citizen. Her poems were included in a book called New Poets of Ireland in 1963. That same year, she earned a diploma in linguistics from the University of Edinburgh. Linguistics is the study of language.

Anne became a lecturer at different universities. She taught literature, linguistics, and creative writing. She worked at universities like Manchester (1957–58) and Aberdeen (1963–65). She also taught at Lancaster (1965–71) and Birmingham (1973–76). From 1976 to 1989, she worked at Sheffield City Polytechnic. She also helped the critic Percy Lubbock, who could not see well. For a time, she worked at the Chester Beatty Library in Dublin. This library has many old manuscripts from the East. From 1990, she taught creative writing part-time. This was at the University of Wales, Cardiff. From the 1970s until she passed away, she also led workshops. These workshops were held in museums, schools, and community centers.

She started two literary magazines, Scintilla and Sheaf. Anne published more than a dozen books of her own poetry. Some of her well-known works include A Fan of Shadows (1967) and Nodes (1969). She also wrote Double Helix (1982) and Timeslips (1997). Later books were Batu-Angas: Envisioning Nature with Alfred Russel Wallace (2008) and Water to Breathe (2009). Her last book was Touching Distances: Diary Poems (2014). Her poems also appeared in many collections by different poets. She was the Chair of the Verbal Arts Association from 1983 to 1986. She was also very active in the Poetry Society.

Anne helped start the Usk Valley Vaughan Association. She also edited The Selected Poems of Henry Vaughan. In 2001, she became a Fellow of the Welsh Academy. She wrote scripts for two son-et-lumière shows. These are light and sound shows. Echoes in Stone was performed at Tintern Abbey. Footsteps on the Sands of Time was at Caldicot Castle. In 2005, she wrote poems for Chepstow town center. These poems were carved into paving stones and walls.

In her later years, Anne lived on a smallholding farm. This was Little Wentwood Farm near Llantrisant, Monmouthshire. She shared this home with her husband, Walter Freeman Jackson. They were married in 1976.

Passing Away

Anne Cluysenaar passed away on November 1, 2014. Her body was found at her home near Usk. Her stepson, Timothy Jackson, was involved in a sad family incident. He was later found responsible for her death. This happened after an argument. In March 2015, a court decided on the outcome of the case.

In August 2015, a special ceramic plaque was put up in her memory. It is in the Owain Glyndwr Field in Usk.