Agi (Agnes) Fried (later Mishol) was born in
Cehu Silvaniei,
Transylvania, Romania, to Hungarian-speaking
Jewish parents who survived the
Holocaust. She was brought to Israel at the age of 4. Her parents ran a bicycle and electronics repair shop in
Gedera, a small southern town.[1] The family spoke mainly Hungarian at home. They lived in a small, one-room apartment in a housing project. Until she was drafted into the
Israel Defense Forces, Mishol slept on an armchair that opened into a bed. She began writing poetry at an early age, but did poorly in school. During her military service at the nuclear facility in
Dimona, she began studying literature at
Ben Gurion University of the Negev. She was married briefly at 19 and a half. After her divorce she moved to
Jerusalem and did her BA and MA degrees in
Hebrew literature at
Hebrew University of Jerusalem, where she attended a writing workshop given by
Yehuda Amichai.[1] In Jerusalem she met and married Giora Mishol, who was working for the
Ministry of Absorption. They moved to
Kfar Mordechai, a
Moshav next to her hometown
Gedera, where they grow
peaches,
persimmons and
pomegranates.[1] They have two children, Maya and Uri,[2] seven cats and a dog.[1]
Mishol was an educator and Hebrew literature teacher at
Be'er Tuvia high school during the years 1976 to 2001. After retiring, she served as a senior lecturer at
Alma College for Hebrew Culture in
Tel Aviv between the years 2002 and 2008. In 2006 she was the artistic director of the International Poetry Festival, held in Mishkenot Sha'ananim,
Jerusalem. From 2011 to this date she leads the Helicon School of Poetry in
Tel Aviv, where she also leads creative writing workshops. Mishol has lectured and taught creative writing at
Ben Gurion University,
Tel Aviv University, and the
Hebrew University in Jerusalem where she also served as Poet-in-Residence (2007).
In 2018 Mishol's personal literary archive, including manuscripts, drafts, photographs, letters and diaries was moved to the
National Library of Israel in
Jerusalem.[3]
Literary career
Mishol is the author of 16 volumes of poetry.[4] She self-published her first book, "Kodem Tafasti Rega," when she was 18 years old, but then recollected all copies in the bookshops and destroyed them. Her latest published book is "Mal'ach Hacheder" (Domestic Angel, Hakibutz Hameuhad). Her volume "Selected and New Poems" (2003, Hakibutz Hameuhad and
Bialik Institute) has sold over 13,000 copies to this date. Mishol's poems have been set to music by various Israeli artists including Corinne Allal,
Yehudit Ravitz and Ori Leshman, and adapted into theatrical works such as "Yanshufot" (Owls, 2004).
Themes
According to
Haim Gouri, Agi Mishol has a broad poetic spectrum: "All flora and fauna near and far, varied and colorful landscapes, love and romance, powerful eroticism, revealing and concealing, being the only child of
Holocaust survivors who personally experienced the worse...It is poetry filled with rich
metaphors and ongoing observation of the human condition."[1]
In his book review in
The New York Times of Look There (2006),
Joel Brouwer wrote: "Mishol... takes up political subjects with a sly delicacy reminiscent of the Polish poet
Wislawa Szymborska's best work".[5]
According to
Amos Oz, "Agi Mishol's poems know how to tell a tale, to sing a song and also dance – all at one and the same time. I love the splendid surprises in them, the subtle and exact sadness, and the mysterious manner by which she makes this sadness overflow with hidden joy."
In 2006
Naomi Shihab Nye wrote: "Agi Mishol's poems feel perfectly weighted. Her mix of honest empathy and care and elegant wit is deeply touching and enlivening."
In 2018 Mishol won the Newman Prize for life Achievement in the field of literature.
In 2018 Mishol received a (third)
honorary doctorate, from
Bar Ilan University, "for her lyrical poetry, which reveals the story of Israel and its people from her personal perspective as the child of Holocaust survivors".[7]
In 2016, Mishol received a (second) PHD Honoris Causa from the
Weizmann Institute of Science. According to
Weizmann Institute's website, "Her writing forges a rare balance between literal and poetic precision and accessibility to the readers, combining everyday language and slang with inventive linguistics. Infused with irony and humor, hers are very personal poems, which, at the same time, provide extensive human insight.".
In 2014 Mishol was awarded an
honorary doctorate (Doctor Philosophiae Honoris Causa) by
Tel Aviv University, "in recognition of her standing as one of Israel's most prominent and best-loved poets [and] her immense contribution to enriching Israeli culture".
In 2007 Mishol received the Dolitsky prize for literature.