Wellington Group
Encyclopedia
The Wellington Group or Wellington School was a group of poets who worked and lived in and around Wellington, the capital of New Zealand
in the 1950s and 1960s.
, who started up the Poetry Yearbook which ran from 1951-1964. In part, it was a reaction to Allen Curnow
's dictum of localism in NZ poetry, emphasising universalism, but both the Wellington Group and Curnow liked to use some degree of Māori symbolism.
Another significant publication was Numbers which ran from 1954-1960.
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
in the 1950s and 1960s.
History
The movement started with Louis JohnsonLouis Johnson (poet)
-Life:He graduated from Wellington Teachers’ Training College.From 1968 to 1980, Johnson lived overseas and traveled widely, with an extended stay in Papua New Guinea....
, who started up the Poetry Yearbook which ran from 1951-1964. In part, it was a reaction to Allen Curnow
Allen Curnow
Thomas Allen Munro Curnow ONZ CBE was a New Zealand poet and journalist. Curnow was born in Timaru and educated at Christchurch Boys' High School, Canterbury University, and Auckland University...
's dictum of localism in NZ poetry, emphasising universalism, but both the Wellington Group and Curnow liked to use some degree of Māori symbolism.
Another significant publication was Numbers which ran from 1954-1960.
Members
- James K. BaxterJames K. BaxterJames Keir Baxter was a poet, and is a celebrated figure in New Zealand society.-Biography:Baxter was born in Dunedin to Archibald Baxter and Millicent Brown and grew up near Brighton. He was named after James Keir Hardie, a founder of the British Labour Party. His father had been a conscientious...
- Alistair CampbellAlistair Campbell (poet)Alistair Te Ariki Campbell, ONZM was a New Zealand poet, playwright, and novelist. His father was a New Zealand Scot and his mother a Cook Island Maori from Penrhyn Island.-Biography:...
- Louis JohnsonLouis Johnson (poet)-Life:He graduated from Wellington Teachers’ Training College.From 1968 to 1980, Johnson lived overseas and traveled widely, with an extended stay in Papua New Guinea....