M. Vasalis

'Vasalis' is a Latinization of her last name 'Leenmans'. The 'M' does not stand for 'Maria' as is sometimes incorrectly reported. The poetess initially wanted to publish her work without revealing that her poems were written by a woman. When, through Simon Vestdijk (a Dutch novelist), she had the chance to make her debut in the literary magazine 'Groot Nederland', they did not allow her to sign her work with merely her initials, the poetess decided to write and publish under a pseudonym. Since her father had written and published under the name 'Vazal' while he was a student, she decided to play with this Latin translation of her last name, which resulted in Vasalis.

Vasalis grew up in the outskirts of Scheveningen, a Dutch city by the sea. Margaretha Leenmans (Kiekie or Kiek for friends) studied medicine and anthropology at Leiden University. She was a member of the sorority 'Zestigpoot', which means 'sixty legs'. They named themselves after the fifteen members and their four limbs (15x4). The crown princess Juliana was also a member. They re-wrote the fairytale about Bluebeard into a new theater play that was performed by the members of the sorority. Leenmans had the part of Bluebeard and Juliana that of the wife.^[3] After her education, in 1939 she settled in Amsterdam to work as a medical doctor. Later she worked as a psychiatrist for children in Assen and Groningen (the Netherlands). During the thirties, she befriended J.C. Bloem, Adriaan Roland Holst, Albert van Dalsum, Victor van Vriesland, Titus Leeser and many others at the 'salon artistique' hosted by the lawyer Harro Bouman and his wife Carina Bouman-Hofstede Crull. It was in 1939 that she married Jan Droogleever Fortuyn, who was to become a professor in neurology.

In 1940, Vasalis made her debut with the bundle 'Parken en woestijnen' which translates to 'parks and deserts'. Other works of poetry are 'De vogel Phoenix' (1947) and 'Vergezichten en gezichten' (1954). The three poetry bundles that were published during her lifetime, only contained about one hundred poems.^[4] Posthumously, 'De oude kustlijn' appeared in 2002. Her children Lous, Hal and Maria Droogleever Fortuyn took care of this publication, as she had asked them.

Vasalis wrote tradional poems that were characterized by the use of personification and anthropomorphism. Her poems often consist of several impressions of nature, then ending in a self-reflection. Besides poems, Vasalis also wrote various essays and a novella. Her work has been frequently awarded, with, amongst others, the prestigious Constantijn Huygensprize in 1974 and the P.C. Hooft-prize in 1982.

Ton Anbeek, a Dutch writer and literary scientist, described her poems as: "Seemingly banal facts that may lead to a flash of insight".

Considered as one of her most well known poems is 'Afsluitdijk' from Parken en woestijnen (1940).

When her husband became a professor at the University of Groningen they moved there with the family in 1951. Vasalis lived in 'house de Zulthe' nearby the village of Roden from 1964 until her passing away in 1998.

There is a bed&breakfast in 'house de Zulthe' in Roden, the Netherlands, the house where Vasalis lived during the last part of her life. Also, there is talk of the construction of a special Vasalis garden in her last place of residence. In 2009 a memorial was placed in honour of her 100th anniversary.

Also, in Leiden, on the corner of the Lijsterstraat and the Leeuwerikstraat, a bronze portrait of Vasalis can be found. The sculpture was made b the artist Aart Schonk. Vasalis lived here during the years of her medical education (from 1927 until 1934). The portrait was placed on the initiative of the Society of Dutch Literature, after the Vasalis-biography by Maaike Meijer.[1] Maijer created the biography with the help of her descendants, but it was said to be with done with caution as Vasalis had always protected her identity and her privacy during her lifetime.[2]

Lastly, a train from the Dutch company Arriva also carries the name M. Vasalis.

Poem by Vasalis on a wall in The Hague

1940 - Onweer, in Drie Novellen, met J. Campert en E. Eewijck
1940 - Parken en woestijnen
1945 - Fragmenten uit een journaal, in Criterium
1947 - De vogel Phoenix
1952 - Naar aanleiding van Atonaal, in Libertinage
1954 - Vergezichten en gezichten, een bloemlezing van verzen
1958 - Kunstenaar en verzet
1960 - De dichter en de zee, bloemlezing
1964 - (S)teken aan de wand, in Raam, toespraak
1977 - Dankwoord bij de uitreiking van de C. Huygensprijs 1974, in Literama
1982 - Het ezeltje, facsimile
1983 - Pijn, waarvoor geen naam bestaat, juryrapport over enkele gedichten van de Nederlandse auteur Bunnik
1984 - Dankwoord bij de aanvaarding van de P.C. Hooftprijs 1982
2002 - De oude kustlijn, posthumously published by her children.

2009 - De amanuensis

2009 - Briefwisseling 1951-1987 / M. Vasalis, Geert van Oorschot. Uitgeverij G.A. van Oorschot, Amsterdam, 2009

2011 - Vriendenbrieven. Exchange in letters between Kiek Drooglever Fortuyn-Leenmans en Harro & Carina Bouman-Hofstede Crull. Woubrugge, 2011 [bezorgd door Hessel Bouman].

• 1941 - Lucy B. en C.W. van der Hoogt prize for Parken en woestijnen
• 1955 - Poetry prize of the municipality of Amsterdam for Vergezichten en gezichten
• 1963 - Cultural prize of the province of Groningen
• 1974 - Constantijn Huygensprize for Vasalis' oeuvre
• 1982 - P.C. Hooft-prize for Vasalis' oeuvre

• Sporen van Vasalis, directed by Willem van der Linde. Stichting Beeldlijn, Groningen, 2010 (dvd, 50 min.). Portrait of the poetess based on an interview from 1987 by Ronald Ohlsen.

• Meijer, Maaike. M. Vasalis: een biografie. Van Oorschot, Amsterdam, 2011, 966 p. ISBN 978-90-282-4120-6 / ISBN 978-90-282-4149-7.

• For more information: this page in Dutch

• CityPoem 'The Donkey' of Vasalis on Erasmuspc, network for cities and culture
• Poem 'Brass band': Translation of her poem 'Fanfare-corps'