Sandra Margaretha Holm

1943 - 1987

Sweden

Sandra Margaretha Holm moved to Denmark from Luleå in 1964, trained at Den Grafiske Højskole (The Graphic Arts Institute of Denmark), worked as a teacher and a freelancer for the Danish Broadcasting Association, and was married to the author Sven Holm from 1964 to 1972. She made her debut in 1969 with a collection of mythical prose texts, Barnlige slagsmål, which was published in both Denmark and Sweden. Her dense texts rich in imagery revolve around experiences of pregnancy and death, while notions of family and parents whirl up in the account by the young female narrator. Powerful physical experiences overwhelm and create a poetic vision. A surreal and mythical female universe emerges.

Sandra Holm’s bilingual poetry collection Indlandsbilleder, 1973, and her Danish work At kalde dyrene sammen, 1975, come into being between the conscious and the unconscious, between Nordic living space and cultures, and with a new linguistic audacity and grotesque humour in its understanding of gender and love. In her novel Har jeg været her før, 1978, she depicts ecstasy, orgasm, artistic tradition, and everyday banal impressions as the prerequisites for artistic creation. Sandra Holm’s few works have been updated by the young experimental women’s prose of the 1980s and 1990s.