Jan Štolba: A day & a dream
– Czechia
Jan Štolba was born in Prague in 1957. He has gone through a number of jobs and has lived in the USA and Australia. He writes poetry and prose, is a literary critic and a saxophone player (formerly a member of the Original Prague Syncopated Orchestra, Krásné nové stroje and Mozart K.; he is now a member of Jan Štolba Quartet, Polydor sextet and Visit of Music). He won the F. X. Šalda Award in 2007. His poetry includes collections such as Bez hnutí křídel (Without the Movement of Wings, 1996), Nic nemít (To Have Nothing, 2001), Den disk (2003) and Hřebeny (Peaks, 2007); his prose includes Provazochodcův sen (A Funambulist’s Dream, 1995), Město za (A City Beyond, 1997) and Nezastavitelný den (An Unstoppable Day, 2019). He published works of literary critique such as Nedopadající džbán (A Non-impacting Jug, 2007) and Lomcování slovy (Shaking Words, 2011). His latest prose has been described as a “philosophical and erotic grotesque set in a film and sport environment.”