the consummate bohemian
Altenberg, Peter (1859-1919)
Poet, Man of Letters, Prose Writer (Aphorisms, Sketches).
Active 1896-1919 in Vienna, Austria, Continental EuropeA lifelong bachelor and hotel-dweller, he owned little and had few ties or constraints, collecting post-cards rather than paintings, writing miniature pieces or “extracts†rather than novels.
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Altenberg’s image as a “character†is reinforced by an eerily realistic, life-sized statue of him in the Café Central in Vienna, where he sits at a table among the other guests.
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His realization of the potential of impressionist literature, his unique “telegram style of the soulâ€, and his contributions to the genres of aphorism, sketch, fragment, and prose poem remain remarkable to this day.
from Literary Encyclopedia: Altenberg, Peter, by Pamela Saur, Lamar University