SMOLKA Iwona

Born on 21 January 1944 in Warsaw; daughter of the pharmacist Jerzy Smolka and the civil servant Maria, née Artwich. She attended Grammar School No. 32 in Włochy, a suburb of Warsaw, completing her advanced secondary education in 1961. She then studied Polish philology at the University of Warsaw (UW), graduating with a master's degree in 1967. From 1966, she worked as an administrator at the Publication Office of the Book Trade Repository (Biuro Wydawnictw Składnicy Księgarskiej). She made her debut in 1968 with a review of Z. Jerzyna's volume Realność (Reality), published as Poezja poszukująca (Exploratory Poetry) in "Twórczość" (no. 7). She continued to collaborate with this periodical as a literary critic. During this period, she also published numerous essays, primarily on contemporary poetry, in other periodicals including "Poezja" (1969-72), "Współczesność" (1969-71), "Literatura" (1972-80), and "Nowe Książki" (from 1977). In 1975, she took up a post with the cultural journalism section of the Chief Literary Editorial Office at Polish Radio (PR). She joined the Polish Writers' Union (ZLP) in 1979. From 1981 to 1989, she was founding co-editor of the independent literary periodical "Wezwanie". She also published in "Obecność" and "Wybór", periodicals that were likewise produced outside the reach of state censorship. From 1981, she wrote reviews for "Przegląd Powszechny" and "Więź". She also collaborated with Radio Free Europe and BBC radio. In 1982, she was transferred to the literary editorial office of Polish Radio 1. She joined the Polish Writers' Association (SPP) in 1989, serving as its deputy president from 1996 to 1999. In 1991, she became a member of the Association of Polish Journalists (SDP). She became editor-in-chief of the Cultural Journalism section of Polish Radio 2 in 1990, when she also started presenting the programme Tygodnik Literacki (Literary Weekly) at the same station. She also created documentary programmes on Polish literature, as well as presenting the shows: Książki, które na was czekają (Books Awaiting You), Ojcowie duchowi XX wieku (Spiritual Fathers of the Twentieth Century), Dziedzictwo Biblii (Legacies of the Bible), Północ Poetów (Poets of the North), Poetyckie Prezentacje (Poetic Presentations), and Spotkania Poetów (Poets' Encounters). She received the Golden Microphone prize in 1991, which was awarded by Polish Radio, and the Australian Polcul Foundation Prize the same year. She joined the Polish PEN Club in 1994, serving as treasurer from 2001 to 2007 and as vice-president from 2012. Between 1999 and 2004, she was acting deputy director of Polish Radio 2. After retiring in 2004, she continued to collaborate with Polish Radio. In 2005, she started publishing reviews in "Dekada Literacka", "Tekstualia" and "Nowa Polsza". She joined the editorial board of the quarterly "Wyspa". She received the Polish Radio Honorary Prize in 2001 and the Honorary Award of the Chapter of the Władysław S. Reymont Prize in 2007. She served on the jury of the Cogito Public Media Prize in 2008 and of the Nike Literary Prize from 2010 to 2012. She was also on the jury of the Ryszard Kapuściński Prize in 2010, and again from 2012 to 2013, and the chapter of the Polish Radio Golden Microphone Prize in 2010. She was made Meritorious Activist of Culture in 2001. She received the Silver Cross of Merit in 2002 and the Knight's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta in 2014. In 2016, she refused to accept the Silver Medal for Merit to Culture – Gloria Artis. She married the poet Emanuel Łastik (who used the pen name Emil Laine) in 1966; he died in 1978. She is mother to Wiktor (b. 1974). She lives in Warsaw.