I’m at Busan airport, waiting for my flight back to Taiwan. The last three days here in Korea have been a blast, and I’m already looking forward to coming back soon.
In Korea, I was presenting at the 7th World Humanities Forum on a panel along with Dr. Lena J. Lee from Dong-A University, Dr. Anna Woodham from King’s College, and Dr. Jisuk Hong from Dankook University. It was a wide-ranging panel, talking about museums, ethics, culture, climate change and video art, and it was a lot of fun. Lena is the Korean translator of Elee Kirk’s book, Snapshots of Museum Experience, and we worked closely during the translation, so it was a pleasure to meet face to face. It was also nice to finally get my hands on a real-life copy of Elee’s book in translation.
After the conference, we spent a day with the brilliant Aram Hur and Yong-June Park, who are the powerhouse team behind the the Indigo Book Company (인디고 서원) and Ecotopia, one of Busan’s most bustling cultural hubs.
Last year, Hello, Stranger, was published in Korean, and Indigo invited me to do an online event. From a distance, it seemed a strange and somewhat magical place. And being there in person only confirmed this impression.
It was wonderful to spend time with Aram and Yong-June and to find out about all their incredible work. If you are ever in Busan, Indigo should be top of your list to visit. The whole building is built around a tall ginko tree, and is exquisitely designed. Unusually for Busan, it also has a lovely little garden — and the food in the vegan restaurant is simply fabulous.
We’ve come away from Busan with our hearts and stomachs full, and our heads buzzing with ideas and plans.
Image: Cover of Indigo Book Publishing’s “Twelve Small Lessons for Teen Book Discussions”
