Ian Abbot

Ian Robert Hamilton Abbot (1947–1989) was a Scottish poet.^[1] A posthumous work of Abbot, Finishing the Picture, was published by Kennedy and Boyd in 2015.^[2]

Abbot was the son of a house-painter, Thomas Abbott, and mother Robina Abbot. His brother was Frazer Abbot, a respected painter, and his sister was a nurse.^[2] Abbot grew up in a tenement on Ruthven Avenue in the city of Perth and attended the Northern District School. Abbot's family later moved to Rannoch Road in the northwest area of Perth with Abbot moving to Goodlyburn Primary School and later Perth Academy. Abbot left the Academy before completing his examinations to work at Tay Salmon Fisheries Company. During this period, he became increasingly left-wing in his political outlook.^[3]

In the 1960s, Abbot attended Dundee Commercial College to attain the Highers he needed to attend university. While at the college, Abbot attended the class of the Scottish poet William Montgomerie and it was Montgomerie that ignited Abbot's interest in poetry. After leaving the college, Abbot found employment as a psychiatric nurse at the Royal Edinburgh Hospital.^[3] From there, he matriculated at the University of Edinburgh Medical School to read medicine, later moving to University of Stirling to read psychology. Abbot left without a degree, having become disenchanted with academia.^[1]

In the 1970s, Abbot became a silversmith and moved to Whitebridge to devote himself to writing, but the remoteness of the location meant that orders for work became fewer and the business failed. Abbot took on a large number of low paying jobs to earn enough money to live, such as casual farm work. He worked as a sheep clipper, fencer, tractor driver and pony drover. Other positions that Abbot described in the biographical entry of his Avoiding the Gods included barman, different types of drivers, forestry worker, auditor and interior designer.^[3]

Durante este período, Abbot explicó que aceptó estos puestos para intentar mantenerse económicamente mientras viajaba por África, según consta en la declaración biográfica de su solicitud de beca al Consejo de las Artes de Escocia , pero su objetivo era convertirse en escritor a tiempo completo. Además, en una carta a William Montgomerie, Abbot admitió que la idea de arriesgarlo todo por la escritura a tiempo completo le asustaba. ^{[ 3 ]}

A principios de la década de 1980, la poesía de Abbot comenzó a publicarse. En 1982, ganó un premio de 50 libras esterlinas, otorgado por el Royal Lyceum Theatre, por el poema «Ariel» . En 1985, ganó otro concurso de poesía con su poema « El primer viaje de Scott» , organizado por la Poetry Association of Scotland . A mediados de la década de 1980, Abbot realizó una gira por Escocia, donde ofreció recitales y talleres de escritura poética. Esto motivó que el Scottish Arts Council le concediera una beca que le permitió completar el manuscrito « Evitando a los dioses» . El manuscrito fue publicado en 1988 por Chapman Publishing. ^{[ 3 ]}

• Abbot, Ian (1988). Evitando a los dioses . Chapman. pág.  64. ISBN 9780906772133.
• Abbot, Ian; McCaffery, Richie (2015). Finishing the picture  : collected poems . Edimburgo: Kennedy & Boyd. ISBN 9781849211543.