Jukka Itkonen – born October 7, 1951 in Varkaus, Finland | Died 13th December 2021 was a Finnish writer, poet, lyricist and musician.
Versatile Itkonen wrote poems, children’s novels and plays for theatre. He also translated a lot of children’s and young people’s books into Finnish. Itkonen’s latest published collection, the Kultapöllö Children’s Poetry Collection (Children’s Center), was published in October 2021.
He also worked as a translator and translated young novels by Sören Olsson and Anders Jacobsson from Swedish. In addition, Itkonen illustrated books and designed book covers. Three of Itkonen’s works have been nominated for the Finlandia Junior Prize: Be & POP (1997), Käpälämäki (2002) and Taikuri Into Kiemura (2007).
By writing, I have tried to find out what this world is, knowing full well that it depends on the direction in which it looks at it – jukka Itkonen in an interview October 2021
Itkonen was also known as a musician. He was a founding member of of the band ZZ Topelius, and he has written hundreds of lyrics for various artists and bands, including Magyar, Harri Marstio, Paula Koivuniemi, Kari Tapio, Taljanka, Solo Band Finland and Topi Sorsakoski & Agents. Itkonen’s musical play Astoria premiered in September 2003 at the Lahti City Theater. Itkonen’s solo album “Have you been loved ?” was released in 2007.
In his career, Itkonen received many wards awards including the Anni Swan Medal, the Finnish Writers’ Association’s Tirlittan Prize and the Arvid Lydecken, Kaarina Helakisa, Minna Canth and Savonia prizes. The Väinö Riikkilä Society awarded Itkonen the Laivakello Prize for significant life’s work in October 2021.
The Finnish poet Jukka Itkonen had been a regular visitor to Barga over a couple of decades (article here)-
Amongst this new influx of people visiting Barga, one person has been visibly more noticeable than most. A thin, gangly man with his long blonde hair topped off with a hat, striding through Barga Vecchia in large seemingly oversized boots and with the gait that perhaps gave more of an idea of a round the world yachtsman after reaching land for the first time in many months.
A bright orange half length leather coat complete with large expanses of boa constrictor snakeskin on the front sides and back complete the striking image. Once seen not forgotten. The Finnish poet Jukka Itkonen was in town once again.
A Christmas poem from Jukka
WINTERDREAM
Time passes slowly
Up here in Finland.
The trees are standing snowly,
Snow covers the sand.
My mind is the dream
Where a songbird is sleeping,
Songbird is sleeping
In the winterly dream.
My poem is the snow
And the snow is the stream.
*
Happy X-mas
Jukka Itkonen
Now is probably a good time to publish a fairly lengthy interview (in English) with Jukka recorded outside Aristo’s in Barga Vecchia in 2011 where he talks about life, poetry, making music and paintings and near death experiences
