Derek Walcott
(1930-2017), St Lucian poet, playwright and theatre directorSitter in 3 portraits
Walcott was a Caribbean poet, playwright and theatre director, and Professor of English at Boston University (1985-2007). Born in St Lucia, he made his name with In a Green Night (1962), The Castaway (1965) and The Gulf (1970). His fascination with parallels between the Caribbean and Homer's Aegean found its fullest expression in Omeros (1989) and The Odyssey which was staged by the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1992. This was the year in which he won the Nobel Prize for Literature. Other publications include poetry collections Tiepolo's Hound (2000) and White Egrets (2010), and his plays The Haitian Trilogy (2002).
Derek Walcott ('The Sun Poet')
by Ross Wilson
acrylic pigments and chalk on card, 1997
NPG 6400
Derek Walcott; Margaret Ruth Walcott (née Maillard)
by Rollie McKenna
bromide print, 1969
NPG x137197
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