Mexican poet david huerta has passed away at the age of 72. The cause of death has been explained as kidney failure. Huerta was considered one of Mexico’s most important poets, and his work addressed social justice issues. Read to know more about his life…
The poet David Huerta has died today at the age of 72. He was a Mexican poet who declared himself the undisputed son of the generation of the student-popular movement of 1968 that sought to democratize the country. His work was marked by his father’s influence, as he was a contemporary of Octavio Paz. In his work, Huerta made an exploration between tradition and the avant-garde, between his parents’ house, always full of artists, and new influences.
About David Huerta
David Huerta was a prolific writer whose poetic and critical work earned him numerous accolades, including the FIL Prize for Literature in Romance Languages in 2019, the National Prize for Sciences and Arts in the category of Literature and Linguistics in 2015, and the Jose “Emilio Pacheco” Prize for Excellence in Letters in 2018.
Huerta was also an accomplished editor and publisher; he was the editor and publisher of the Encyclopedia of Mexico and director of the book collection University Student Library.
He taught courses at the Octavio Paz Foundation and the Foundation for Mexican Letters, was the editorial secretary of The FCE Gazette, member of the editorial board of the literary magazine Letras Libres, and columnist for several Mexican newspapers.
Despite his many accomplishments, Huerta never lost sight of his poetry. In a statement released after his death, the Ministry of Culture lamented Huerta’s “sensitive death” and called him “one of our most important poets.
His poems are marked by their introspective quality and their concern with history and social justice. His work has been published in more than thirty anthologies and translated into more than a dozen languages.
“A necklace of stillness surrounds the spacious millimeters of the self,” Huerta once wrote in Incurable, his most emblematic long poem. This is how all those who knew him must feel now, surrounded by his stillness and legacy.
Huerta’s death is a great loss to the literary world. He will be remembered for his unique voice and contribution to Mexican poetry.