Slovene man of letters Branko Hofman (1929–1991), born in Rogatec, left his bold mark on the period between the end of the Second World War and the early nineties of the 20th century. He studied Comparative Literature and Philosophy at the Faculty of Arts in Ljubljana, worked as a journalist and editor at Radio Koper, a journalist and editor for the daily newspaper Večer between 1963 and 1968, finally retiring as an editor of the National Publishing House of Slovenia in Ljubljana. He was the first Slovene writer to publically confront the subject of the Goli Otok political prison camp and the inhumane treatment of its prisoners. Screening the manuscript of his novel Noč do jutra (Night Till Morning), which addressed themes of communist persecution, the UDBA secret police summoned him for interrogations in 1975. The book eventually saw light of day and was translated into several languages. As a poet, Branko fashioned himself in the manner of post-war intimism. His first collections show a robust traditional style, later increasingly tinged with shades of modernism. Hofman’s art, his poetry and prose alike, is characterized by a strong erotic charge, apparent for example in the novel Ljubezen (Love). His drama belongs to the sphere of so-called sentimental humanism-realism, with themes rooted in the revolutionary struggle and the contemporary human condition.
