A Croatian Poet

Keeper of the Absent

The deserted house comes alive again, it opens and gives away everything it kept in solitude. The odour of mildew, the squeaking of a dilapidated floor. The cracks are familiar with everything that got sneaked in. Only from time to time the wall interior, ever crumblier, becomes visible.


The house, a keeper of the absent and their perpetual yearning. Although chipped at the edges, it collects the thought that has built it. The stars concur from air. Silent, they preserve its shape.

by Andriana Škunca

I like the images that come to mind as I read her poem. I can see the old house, sitting quietly and empty, with only the stars to watch over it. I wonder how the poem changed when it was translated into English?

Andriana Škunca was born in Bjelovar in 1944. When she was a child, her family moved to a small town on the island of Pag. It is this island that she has dedicated most of her poetry to. She began her career as a poet in 1969 and has received the A. B. Šimić Prize for her first collection of poetry, Do neba bijelo. Up till now she has published 20 volumes which contain poetry, essays, and monographs on the visual arts.