Marusya Klimova (first name also transliterated Marusia or Maroussia; russian: Мару́ся Кли́мова; real name Tatyana Nikolayevna Kondratovich, ; born January 14, 1961 in

Leningrad Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

), is a Russian writer and translator. She lives in Saint Petersburg.

Biography

Marusya Klimova is one of the most prominent representatives of counter−culture in modern Russian literature. In Marusya Klimova's oeuvre there's a surprising combination of

postmodernist Postmodernism is an intellectual stance or mode of discourseNuyen, A.T., 1992. The Role of Rhetorical Devices in Postmodernist Discourse. Philosophy & Rhetoric, pp.183–194. characterized by skepticism toward the " grand narratives" of modern ...

irony, immoralism,

misanthropy Misanthropy is the general hatred, dislike, distrust or contempt of the human species, human behavior or human nature. A misanthrope or misanthropist is someone who holds such views or feelings. The word's origin is from the Greek words μῖ� ...

and an adherence to a cult of pure beauty and genius in the spirit of

decadence The word decadence, which at first meant simply "decline" in an abstract sense, is now most often used to refer to a perceived decay in standards, morals, dignity, religious faith, honor, discipline, or skill at governing among the members ...

of the Age of Art Nouveau. Early in life she was connected to the

underground culture Underground culture, or simply underground, is a term to describe various alternative cultures which either consider themselves different from the mainstream of society and culture, or are considered so by others. The word "underground" is used ...

of Leningrad. In early 90s she lived in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

. In her autobiographical novels («Blue Blood» (1991), «The Little House at Bois-Colombes» (1998), «The Blonde Beasts» (2001)) there's a wide panorama of European life around 80s-90s described. The author creates the images of newly appeared Russian

dandies A dandy is a man who places particular importance upon physical appearance, refined language, and leisurely hobbies, pursued with the appearance of nonchalance. A dandy could be a self-made man who strove to imitate an aristocratic lifestyle desp ...

and

transvestites Transvestism is the practice of dressing in a manner traditionally associated with the opposite sex. In some cultures, transvestism is practiced for religious, traditional, or ceremonial reasons. The term is considered outdated in Western ...

, who easily change their masks and dresses. Those metaphors correspond to the atmosphere of a universal carnival of those years, which were marked by prompt changes of social identifications. «My History of the Russian Literature» (2004) is a union of a collection of essay and a novel of ideas. Classical Russian writers' destinies and works are represented and seen in that book as the facts and from the perspective of personal biography of the author. This book, abounding of paradoxical and exaggerated subjective judgements, has caused a huge indignation in readers' minds and environment. It became one of the most scandalous phenomena of Russian literature in the last decade. Marusya Klimova's works have been translated to French, German, English, Estonian, Serbian and Italian languages. She is also known as a translator. Marusya Klimova is the author of translations from French to Russian (

Louis-Ferdinand Céline Louis Ferdinand Auguste Destouches (27 May 1894 – 1 July 1961), better known by the pen name Louis-Ferdinand Céline ( , ) was a French novelist, polemicist and physician. His first novel ''Journey to the End of the Night'' (1932) won the '' Pr ...

, Jean Genet,

Pierre Guyotat Pierre Guyotat (9 January 1940 – 7 February 2020) was a French writer. Early life Pierre Guyotat was born on 9 January 1940 in Bourg-Argental, Loire. Literary career 1960s–1970s Guyotat wrote his first novel, '' Sur un cheval'', in 1960. ...

, Georges Bataille,

Monique Wittig Monique Wittig (; July 13, 1935 – January 3, 2003) was a French author, philosopher and feminist theorist who wrote about abolition of the sex-class system and coined the phrase "heterosexual contract". Her seminal work is titled '' The Strai ...

, Michel Foucault,

Pierre Louÿs Pierre Louÿs (; 10 December 1870 – 4 June 1925) was a French poet and writer, most renowned for lesbian and classical themes in some of his writings. He is known as a writer who sought to "express pagan sensuality with stylistic perfection". ...

, etc.). She is a Chevalier of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (2006).

Books

*''Golubaya krov'' (''Blue Blood'', 1996) *''Domik v Bua-Colomb'' (''The Little House at Bois-Colombes'', 1998) *''Morskiye rasskazy'' (''Marine Stories'', 1999) *''Belokurye bestii'' (''The Blonde Beasts'', 2001) *''Selin v Rossii'' (''Céline in Russia'', 2000) *''Moya istoriya russkoy literatury'' (''My History of Russian Literature'', 2004) *''Parizhskiye vstrechi'' (''Paris Meetings'', 2004) *''Moya teoriya literatury'' (''My Theory of Literature'', 2009) *''Portret hudojnitzy v junosti'' (''A Portrait Of The Artist As A Young Woman'', 2012) *''Bezumnaja mgla '' (''Mad Haze'', 2013) *''Profil Gelderlina na noge anglijskogo poeta'' (''Holderlin Profile On The Leg Of The English Poet'', 2016) *'' Holod i otchujdenie '' ('' Cold and alienation'', 2019)

Notes

*(en
Interview for Underpass.
(Underpass, August 2017) *(en
Fair-haired Furies. Extract from the novel «The Blonde Beasts».
(Underpass, August 2017) *(it
Elisa Navetta, "I 'mostri' di Marusja Klimova".
(Rome, ''Slavia''

2001) *(fr
Entretien avec Maroussia Klimova.
Propos recueillis par Guillaume Fau

* (de
Karlheinz Kasper. Das literarische Leben in Russland 2001.
„Osteuropa“ N4, 2002
Website for author
(in Russian) {{DEFAULTSORT:Klimova, Marusya 1961 births Living people Russian women novelists Writers from Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg State University alumni Postmodern writers Chevaliers of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres