British Council Market Focus Cultural Programme - public events
Saturday 9 March
Storytelling with Reda Gaudiamo
14.00-15.00
Norwich and Norfolk Millennium Library, The Forum, Millennium Plain, Norwich, NR2 1AW
Indonesian short story writer and singer Reda Gaudiamo will tell stories based on her new children’s book, The Adventures of Na Willa, published by The Emma Press. This free, drop-in session will take place in the Children’s Library at the Norwich and Norfolk Millennium Library, in partnership with the National Centre for Writing.
Free | No booking necessary
Monday 11 March
17,000 Islands of Imagination: Indonesian Literature Today
19.00-20.30
Knowledge Centre, The British Library, 96 Euston Road, London, NW1 2DB
With its incredible diversity of identities, languages, religions, geographies and histories, Indonesia cannot easily be represented in writing. Louise Doughty chairs an evening of discussion and readings with some of Indonesia’s most exciting contemporary writers: Agustinus Wibowo, Dee Lestari and Seno Gumira Ajidarma. Together they will talk about turning their islands of imagination into stories, novels and narratives that together begin to capture the complexity and diversity of Indonesia today.
Join us for a reception following the talk.
£8-£12 | Book online
Tuesday 12 March
Resistance: writing as activism
19:00-20:00
Free Word Centre, 60 Farringdon Road, London EC1R 3GA
Join us for an exclusive evening with two of Indonesia’s most exciting writers, Intan Paramaditha and Norman Erikson Pasaribu. Intan Paramaditha is a fiction writer and academic whose works focus on the intersection between gender and sexuality, culture and politics. Norman Erikson Pasaribu is a poet, fiction and non-fiction writer who was dubbed by English PEN as ‘part of a long tradition of queer Catholic writing’. Both Paramaditha and Pasaribu are deeply engaged with Indonesian feminist and cultural activist networks. They will be joined by Harry Josephine Giles, writer and performer, to discuss how writing can be an act of resistance against the prevailing culture and to consider and how to navigate life as an activist writer. Chaired by Theodora Danek.
In partnership with English PEN.
£7-£10 | Book online
Thursday 14 March
Democracy in Indonesia: Cultural Perspectives
18.00-19.30
SOAS Alumni Lecture Theatre (SALT), Paul Webley Wing (Senate House North Block)
SOAS University of London, Russell Square, London, WC1E 7HU
More than 20 years since the fall of the Suharto regime, writers and journalists occupy a key role in shaping the cultural life of the world’s third largest democracy, reflecting on recent history and also contributing to discussion about the future direction of this archipelagic nation. Prominent Indonesian writers Djenar Maesa Ayu, Leila S. Chudori and Norman Erikson Pasaribu will talk about their perspective on the Indonesian cultural scene in this key election year.
Chaired by Dr Ben Murtagh, Senior Lecturer in Indonesian and Malay, SOAS
Join us for a reception following the talk.
Free | Book online
Indonesian Poets in London: Avianti Armand and Laksmi Pamuntjak
20.00-21.15
National Poetry Library, Level 5, Blue Side, Royal Festival Hall, London, SE1 8XX
Venture beyond the pantun with this line-up of today's most celebrated Indonesian poets. As part of The London Book Fair's Indonesian focus, hear readings from poets Avianti Armand and Laksmi Pamuntjak, with a discussion of their work and a Q&A session chaired by Will Harris.
Free | Book online
Friday 15 March
A Salon to Celebrate the Launch of Stand Magazine
19.00-21.00
London Review Bookshop, 14-16 Bury Place, Bloomsbury, London, WC1A 1JL
Join us for an evening of poetry readings, conversation, music and wine with Indonesian writers Avianti Armand, Clara Ng and Nirwan Dewanto to launch the special Indonesia edition of Stand – a fixture on the British and world literary scene since 1952. The evening will be hosted by Kate Wakeling.
Free | Book online
Apple & Knife: Intan Paramaditha in conversation with Syd Moore
19.00-20.00
Essex Book Festival, Metal at Chalkwell Hall, Chalkwell Avenue, Southend-on-Sea, SS0 8NB
Intan Paramaditha is an Indonesian writer who re-writes traditional Indonesian folk tales through a feminist horror lens. Syd Moore’s mystery thrillers are inspired by the myths of Essex. Join us as these two extraordinary women discuss their work, their different perspectives, and what it means to re-write old stories and myths with a contemporary, feminist slant.
£5-£7 | Book online
Saturday 16 March
An Evening with Sheila Rooswitha Putri
19:00-20:00
Glasgow Zine Library at Centre for Contemporary Arts Glasgow 350 Sauchiehall St, Glasgow G2 3JD
Join us for a unique evening with Indonesian graphic novelist Sheila Rooswitha Putri, writer Arianne Maki and photographer Ben Soedira. Sheila Rooswitha Putri’s work is inspired by the everyday happenings of Jakarta, one of the world’s megacities. Most of her stories are based on personal experience, and her love of Jakarta has inspired many collaborations with other comic artists. Making a special guest appearance at the Glasgow Zine Library as part of the Indonesia Market Focus at The London Book Fair 2019, Sheila will be joined by Ben Soedira, a British/Indonesian photographer whose work investigates place and the idea of home, and Arianne Maki, who writes on themes of otherness and belonging.
Join us for a glass of wine after the event.
Free | Book online
