Tove Jansson is a writer and artist from Finland who invented and drew the legendary Moomin trolls. Fantastic creatures similar to hippos became one of the most popular fairy-tale characters of the 20th century, and their creator gained worldwide fame.
Biography: childhood and youth
Tove Marika Jansson was born on August 9, 1914 in Helsinki. She became the first-born in tandem of sculptor Victor and artist Signe. Soon, two brothers were born to Tuve. The family spoke Swedish, since her mother had noble roots, she belonged to the ancient Swedish dynasty of Hammersten, so the family considered it right to speak the mother tongue of famous ancestors. Tuve's parents were creative people and adhered to an eccentric lifestyle. They organized large-scale parties at home. In an autobiography, Jansson later writes that she loved to fall asleep and wake up in childhood to the chords of music. Subsequently, it is with this atmosphere that she will be inspired when creating the world of Moomins.
The family spent the summer months with Signe's parents, who lived on the Swedish island of Blide. There, a fantastic character was invented, which later became a Moomin. Tove painted it during a dispute with his younger brothers. Initially, it looked different: it looked little like a hippo and had a long narrow nose. Tove gave him the name Snork. In her books, he later changed his appearance and became one of the main characters, a friend of the Moomin family, who could change color according to his mood.
Career
After school, Tove decided to follow in her mother's footsteps. She moved to Stockholm, where she began to study fine art. Subsequently, for a long time she was engaged in illustration of other people's creations. Then Jansson used the picture of Snork as a signature on her works.
Soon Tove decided to try herself as a writer. In 1938, her first book, The Little Trolls and the Great Flood, was published. She was also the author of illustrations for her. The writer later admitted that she described her family. The first book did not impress readers. The second and third books: “Moomin and Comet” and “Wizard's Hat” made a splash. The first came out in 1946, and the second a couple of years later. In total, Tuva has written 9 books about the Moomins.
Initially, Jansson wrote in Swedish, because he was closer to her, because she spoke it from childhood. For this reason, her native Finland became one of the last countries that fell in love with the Moomins, the peak of popularity of which came in the era of linguistic disagreements between Finns and Swedes. Now her works have been translated into several dozen languages.
Jansson liked to write for children, and books about good-natured hippos began to be published one by one. In the 50s, the world was captured by a real Moomin boom. Publishers offered Tove lucrative contracts. Moomins made her rich and famous. In 1966, the writer was awarded the most prestigious award in the field of children's literature - the G.-X. Andersen.
Tove Jansson has also published books for adults, including "Gray Silk", an autobiography "The Sculptor's Daughter". They were also successful.
