Clement Byrne Christesen (28 October 1911 – 28 June 2003) was the founder of the Australian literary magazine ''

Meanjin ''Meanjin'' (), formerly ''Meanjin Papers'' and ''Meanjin Quarterly'', is an Australian literary magazine. The name is derived from the Turrbal word for the spike of land where the city of Brisbane is located. It was founded in 1940 in Brisbane ...

''. He served as the magazine's editor from 1940 until 1974.

Biography

Early years

Clement Byrne Christesen was born and spent his early life in

Townsville Townsville is a city on the north-eastern coast of Queensland, Australia. With a population of 180,820 as of June 2018, it is the largest settlement in North Queensland; it is unofficially considered its capital. Estimated resident population, 3 ...

. His father, Patrick, was of mixed Irish and Danish descent, while his mother Susan (née Byrne), was mostly Irish. The family moved to

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...

in 1917, where Christesen later attended the

University of Queensland , mottoeng = By means of knowledge and hard work , established = , endowment = A$224.3 million , budget = A$2.1 billion , type = Public research university , chancellor = Peter Varghese , vice_chancellor = Deborah Terry , city = B ...

Career

After leaving university, Christesen worked as a journalist at Brisbane's ''

Courier-Mail ''The Courier-Mail'' is an Australian newspaper published in Brisbane. Owned by News Corp Australia, it is published daily from Monday to Saturday in tabloid format. Its editorial offices are located at Bowen Hills, in Brisbane's inner norther ...

'' and the ''Telegraph'', as well as a publicity officer for the Queensland government. Christesen was founding editor of '' Meanjin Papers'' which was first published in 1940, following his return from overseas travel. With an offer of full-time salary and commercial support for the publication, the magazine and its editor moved to the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb nor ...

in 1945. He retired as editor in 1974.

Personal life

In January 1942, he married Nina Maximoff, only daughter of Captain and Mrs. Michael Maximoff of South Brisbane, Queensland. Nina Christesen would found the Russian Department at the University of Melbourne. In the 1940s they moved to "Stanhope" in

Eltham Eltham ( ) is a district of southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. It is east-southeast of Charing Cross, and is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. The three wards of Elt ...

, Victoria.

Awards

Christesen was granted several awards and state honours in recognition of his achievements: * Officer of the

Order of British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

, 1 January 1962, ''In recognition of service to Australian literature'' * Medal of the

Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...

, 26 January 2000, for ''service to the development of Australian creative and critical writing as founder and editor of Meanjin Quarterly'' *

Centenary Medal The Centenary Medal is an award which was created by the Australian Government in 2001. It was established to commemorate the centenary of the Federation of Australia and to recognise "people who made a contribution to Australian society or go ...

, 1 January 2001, for ''service to Australian society and the humanities in writing and literature''

Bibliography

* * ''The Hand of Memory : Selected Stories and Verse'', Meanjin Press, 1970, * ''The Troubled Eyes of Women'', University of Queensland Press, 1990, ;As editor * ''Australian Heritage : Selection of Australian writings accompanied by brief introductions, chosen to show the relationship between writers and social history'', Longmans, 1949, 1962, 1967 * ''On Native Grounds : Australian writing from Meanjin quarterly'', Selected with a preface by C.B. Christesen, Angus and Robertson, 1968

Death

Christesen died on 28 June 2003 at Templestowe nursing home two years after his wife's death. "He was lucid right to the end," said his niece Nina Joan Christesen.

Notes

References

* * *
Clem Christessen 1911–2003
at

Australian Academy of the Humanities The Australian Academy of the Humanities was established by Royal Charter in 1969 to advance scholarship and public interest in the humanities in Australia. It operates as an independent not-for-profit organisation partly funded by the Australia ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Christesen, Clem 1911 births 2003 deaths Australian people of Danish descent Australian people of Irish descent Australian literary critics Meanjin people Officers of the Order of the British Empire People from Townsville Recipients of the Centenary Medal Recipients of the Medal of the Order of Australia