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The 17th edition of the International Poetry and Literature Festival got underway in Istanbul, organized by the Poetry Association and held as part of the ''Türkiye Kultur Yolu Festival," a nationwide cultural program organized by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism.
The opening ceremony, which brings together poets, writers and literary figures from Türkiye and abroad, took place at the Rami Library as part of the Istanbul leg of the Türkiye Kultur Yolu Festivali, organized by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism.
Deputy Minister of Culture and Tourism Coskun Yilmaz said little needs to be said in the presence of poets and affirmed the Ministry's continued commitment to supporting such cultural initiatives.
Festival President Adnan Ozer, a poet, writer, editor, journalist and translator, noted that the event reflects 20 years of work, with hundreds of poets and writers taking part since 2008 across dozens of themes.
This year's theme is "sustainable living and the transformative power of poetry."
Ozer described himself as a humble admirer of Besir Ayvazoglu, this year's honorary award recipient, calling his contributions to Turkish literature and Istanbul monumental. "I found it more useful to read good poems than to write mediocre ones."
Ayvazoglu, who received the honorary award from Yilmaz, described himself as a retired poet who began writing as a young man and even published a few collections but came to realize he could not compete with the great poets.
He said he found more value in reading great poetry than writing mediocre verse, though he never abandoned it altogether.
He added that he has written biographies of major Turkish literary figures such as Mehmet Akif Ersoy, Yahya Kemal Beyatlı, Asaf Halet Celebi and Ahmet Hasim and believes this work has contributed more to Turkish literature than his poetry could have. He called being honored at the festival a great source of personal pride.
On the first day, a poetry gathering titled "Istanbul Reads Poetry" was also held at the Rami Library, featuring poets from abroad including Guy Helminger, Ozlem Ozgul Dundar and Nenad Saponja, alongside workshop participants.
An "International Poetry Evening" reading followed the opening.
Tomorrow, a panel titled "City and Poetry: Barcelona, Thessaloniki, Baku" will be held at the Ataturk Cultural Center (AKM) Library, featuring Eduard Sanahuja from Spain-Catalonia, Dimitris Leontzakos from Greece and Aksin Yenisey from Azerbaijan.
At 5:30 p.m. local time (2:30 p.m. GMT), a conference titled "The Transformative Power of Poetry for a Sustainable Life" will follow, featuring Ozer, Julia Fiedorczuk from Poland, and Matteo Lefevre from Italy.
On Monday, Sept. 28, the program continues with the "Historic City Poetry Stops Tour" along the Sirkeci-Beyazit line. At 4:00 p.m. local time (1:00 p.m. GMT), the Besir Ayvazoglu Panel will take place with Alim Kahraman, Taner Ay, and Omer Erdem.
At 6:00 p.m., an international poetry reading hosted by the Ahmet Hamdi Tanpinar Library will feature Niels Hav from Denmark, Julia Fiedorczuk, Matteo Lefevre, Alper Ceker, Huseyin Akin, and Dimitris Leontzakos.
The festival will conclude on Sept. 29.
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