Ivan Potrc
Encyclopedia
Ivan Potrč was a Slovene writer
and playwright
.
, in what was then the Duchy of Styria
in the Austro-Hungarian Empire. As a teenager living in difficult social circumstances and in the time of the rise of German nationalism
, which was seen a threat to the northern regions of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia
, he became an enthusiastic Communist
. Due to his political activities he was sentenced to eleven months of prison and excluded from the high school even before he passed his final matura
exam. From 1938 till 1941, he was employed as a journalist at the National liberal daily newspaper Večernik in Maribor
. In 1941, after the Nazis invaded Yugoslavia
and annexed northern Slovenia
to the German Reich, Portč was interned to Mathausen concentration camp, from where he returned in 1943 and joined the Yugoslav partisans. During and after the end of the World War II
he worked as editor and journalist for the newspapers Domovina, Borba
and Ljudska pravica. In 1947, he became the main editor and later the director of the Mladinska knjiga publishing company.
in the northeastern Slovenia
. He was influenced by his social environment and his avant-garde political ideas to which he remained faithful all his life. His most influential works were the drama trilogy depicting the disintegration and the downfall of Krefels, a landowner family, and the novel Na kmetih ("The Land and the Flesh"), which has been translated to numerous languages.
For his work, Potrč received two Prešeren Award
s. In 1947, he was awarded for his play Kreflova kmetija ("Krefel's Farm"), and in 1955, for his novel Na kmetih. From 1977 until 1983, he was associate member of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts
and from 1983 until his death a full member of the academy.
He was married to the author Branka Jurca. Their daughter Marjetica Potrč
is a renowned artist and architect.
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
and playwright
Playwright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
.
Biography
Ivan Potrč was born in a poor peasant family in Štuki near PtujPtuj
Ptuj is a city and one of 11 urban municipalities in Slovenia. Traditionally the area was part of the Lower Styria region. The municipality is now included in the Podravje statistical region...
, in what was then the Duchy of Styria
Duchy of Styria
The history of Styria concerns the region roughly corresponding to the modern Austrian state of Styria and the Slovene region of Styria from its settlement by Germans and Slavs in the Dark Ages until the present...
in the Austro-Hungarian Empire. As a teenager living in difficult social circumstances and in the time of the rise of German nationalism
German nationalism in Austria
German nationalism is a political ideology and a current in Austrian politics. It has its origins in the German National Movement of the 19th century, a nationalist movement of the German-speaking population in the Austro-Hungarian Empire and had striven for a closer connection of the...
, which was seen a threat to the northern regions of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia
Kingdom of Yugoslavia
The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was a state stretching from the Western Balkans to Central Europe which existed during the often-tumultuous interwar era of 1918–1941...
, he became an enthusiastic Communist
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
. Due to his political activities he was sentenced to eleven months of prison and excluded from the high school even before he passed his final matura
Matura
Matura or a similar term is the common name for the high-school leaving exam or "maturity exam" in various countries, including Albania, Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Italy, Kosovo, Liechtenstein, Macedonia, Montenegro, Poland, Serbia,...
exam. From 1938 till 1941, he was employed as a journalist at the National liberal daily newspaper Večernik in Maribor
Maribor
Maribor is the second largest city in Slovenia with 157,947 inhabitants . Maribor is also the largest and the capital city of Slovenian region Lower Styria and the seat of the Municipality of Maribor....
. In 1941, after the Nazis invaded Yugoslavia
Invasion of Yugoslavia
The Invasion of Yugoslavia , also known as the April War , was the Axis Powers' attack on the Kingdom of Yugoslavia which began on 6 April 1941 during World War II...
and annexed northern Slovenia
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
to the German Reich, Portč was interned to Mathausen concentration camp, from where he returned in 1943 and joined the Yugoslav partisans. During and after the end of the World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
he worked as editor and journalist for the newspapers Domovina, Borba
Borba (newspaper)
Borba is a Serbian newspaper, formerly the official newspaper of the League of Communists of Yugoslavia...
and Ljudska pravica. In 1947, he became the main editor and later the director of the Mladinska knjiga publishing company.
Work
Ivan Potrč was the pioneer of social realismSocial realism
Social Realism, also known as Socio-Realism, is an artistic movement, expressed in the visual and other realist arts, which depicts social and racial injustice, economic hardship, through unvarnished pictures of life's struggles; often depicting working class activities as heroic...
in the northeastern Slovenia
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
. He was influenced by his social environment and his avant-garde political ideas to which he remained faithful all his life. His most influential works were the drama trilogy depicting the disintegration and the downfall of Krefels, a landowner family, and the novel Na kmetih ("The Land and the Flesh"), which has been translated to numerous languages.
For his work, Potrč received two Prešeren Award
Prešeren Award
Prešeren Award is the highest decoration in the field of artistic and in the past also scientific creation in Slovenia awarded each year to one or two eminent Slovene artists...
s. In 1947, he was awarded for his play Kreflova kmetija ("Krefel's Farm"), and in 1955, for his novel Na kmetih. From 1977 until 1983, he was associate member of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts
Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts
The Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts is the national academy of Slovenia, which encompasses science and the arts and brings together the top Slovene researchers and artists as members of the academy....
and from 1983 until his death a full member of the academy.
He was married to the author Branka Jurca. Their daughter Marjetica Potrč
Marjetica Potrc
Marjetica Potrč is an artist and architect based in Ljubljana, Slovenia. Her interdisciplinary practice includes on-site projects, research, architectural case studies, and series of drawings...
is a renowned artist and architect.