Marie Under

Marie Under was born in Tallinn on March 27, 1883. In 1917, amidst revolutionary turmoil, Under co-founded the romantic avant-garde literary movement Siuru, publishing her sensational debut collection Sonetid (Sonnets), which stunned readers with its sensual erotic freedom and sonic brilliance.

During the catastrophic events of World War II and Soviet deportations, Under's poetry darkened into tragic metaphysical grandeur, giving voice to national grief in Mureliku suuga (With a Sorrowful Mouth). Fleeing into Swedish exile in 1944, she lived in Stockholm until her death at 97; her remains were returned home to Tallinn in 2016.