Andrei Voznesensky
Born in Moscow, Andrei Voznesensky (1933-2010) was a world-renowned Russian poet. While Voznesensky was trained in architectural draftsmanship and toyed with being a painter, he published his first poem in 1958. His description of modern man using contemporary metaphor and examples with a new and daring rhythm, has generated great critical and public response, over 500,000 people ordered his 1962 book An Achilles Heart in advance. While Voznesensky tried to remain neutral and would not discuss politics, his work was called obscure and gained incredible controversy. After being receiving the USSR state prize for poetry in 1977 he was immediately forbidden to publish, read in public, and his name was taken off the official list of Soviet writers.