Globally renowned writers to visit Seoul

Int’l literature forum opens May 23

By Yun Suh-young

J.M.G Le Clezio

Yu Hua

Robert Hass

Amitav Ghosh

Seoul International Forum for Literature (SIFL) 2017 will be held May 23 to 25 under the theme "Literature and Its Readership in the Changing World" at the Kyobo Convention Hall in Gwanghwamun, central Seoul.

The SIFL was first held in 2000 to offer a platform for writers from all across the world to discuss various issues and exchange views on the state and role of literature. It is also intended to play a bridging role between writers and readers, offering readers a rare opportunity to meet renowned authors. The forum is held every five years and is organized by the Daesan Foundation and the Arts Council Korea.

At this year's forum, participants will discuss the radical changes in society owing to globalization and technological advancements and how literature and its readership can respond to those changes.

Participating writers from overseas include Svetlana Alexievich, Omar Perez Lopez, Yu Hua, Amitav Ghosh, Nora Okja Keller, Antoine Compagnon, Ben Okri, Stuart Moulthrop, Jan Costin Wagner, Jean-Marie Gustave Le Clezio, Robert Hass, Nuruddin Farah and Hirano Keiichiro Participants from Korea include Ko Un, Kim U-chang, Hwang Sok-yong, Jeong You-jeong, Hwang Sun-mi, and Chang Kang-myoung to name a few. Thirteen writers from overseas and 50 writers from Korea will participate in the event.

There will be four different sessions at the forum: "Perceiving Us and Them," "Literature in the Globalizing World: New Overlapping Territories of Literature and of Culture," "Literature in the Age of Multimedia" and "Writers and the Market."

The forum is provided in English and Korean and anyone can attend for free. For facilitation of seat designation, organizers are advising attendees to sign up for seats on the website in advance. Those who are not able to preregister can sign up at the door.

As a special service to those who are unable to attend, the three keynote speeches held every morning will be broadcast live on Naver. The three keynote sessions will be held from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. from May 23 through 25. The first keynote session on May 23 features Svetlana Alexievich, Ko Un, and Kim U-chang, the second on May 24 features Antoine Compagnon, Kim Seung-hee, Chong Hyon-jong and Hwang Sok-yong. The third session on May 25 features Jean-Marie Gustave Le Clezio, Yu Jong-ho, and Hyun Ki-young.

Although the literary forum is the main event, there is a separate evening event that is open to the public to engage and interact with writers. The "Evening of Literary Exchanges (between East Asian and World literature)" held at the KT Art Hall in Gwanghwamun May 23 to 24 at 7:30 p.m. to 9 p.m., will be a cultural event where writers read from their works and artists perform music and dance. The lineups for each day are available online.

In addition, writers will be holding individual events to meet with their readers. Ukrainian writer Svetlana Alexievich will meet with Seoul National University students on May 22 and Sogang University students on May 24 during a discussion session. Legendary French writer Jean-Marie Gustave Le Clezio and Belgian writer Antoine Compagnon will each speak at Seoul National University and Yonsei University on May 24 and 23 respectively.

American writer Robert Hass and Korea's representative poet Ko Un will co-attend an academic conference on May 23 at Dankook University in Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province. Somalian writer Nuruddin Farah will speak at the African Institute at Kyung Hee University on May 24, noted Chinese writer Yu Hua will speak at Ewha Womans University on May 24, German writer Jan Costin Wagner will pair up with Korean writer Jeong You-jeong to meet with readers at Goethe Institut on May 24. Japanese writer Hirano Keiichiro will be speaking at Seoul National University on May 23 and on the same day meet with readers at Booktique, a book cafe in Mapo-gu, Seoul. Cuban writer Omar Perez will speak to young adults at the Seoul Youth Center for Cultural Exchanges on May 24.

Visit seoulforum.org for more information or to register.