Allen Grossman, 1932-2014
Allen Grossman, cherished poet and teacher of poets, died this past Friday at age 82 due to "complications from Alzheimer's." He was held in high regard by those few who were privileged to know him: his students and community of fellow poets. Authoring (or anthologized in) over 20 publications, Grossman's poetry had many tributaries, taking from Stevens, Lowell, Blake, Auden, Descartes, and others—but his voice was distinctly his own, and of course, distinctly American.
His writing was not only included in the company of great artists before him, but also recognized by those alongside, distinguished as he was as the winner of a Pushcart Prize, a Guggenheim Fellowship, a MacArthur Fellowship, and as a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. As a platform for Grossman's work, the University of Michigan Press published The Long Schoolroom, Grossman's reflections on the inherently destructive (and so not just noble) nature of poetry, as an artistic scaffolding of human culture.
Grossman is survived by the artistic legacy in his most inspired students, as well as his children: authors, critics, a sculptor and a video game designer. You can find more information on Grossman's life and work, in his obituary in the New York Times, one of his many appreciations written in his wake.
