Sitok Srengenge launches a poetry anthology

Indonesian poet Sitok Srengenge signs a copy of his dual-language anthology, On Nothing, for a fan. The anthology was launched on Sunday evening at Murni's Warung in Ubud, Bali, during the Ubud Writers and Readers Festival 2005.

Australian poet-musician Jan Cornall, who also co-edited the book, opened with an anecdote of her introduction to Sitok at a Sydney writers festival a few years ago: "I was introduced to Sitok through (QB World Books owner and publisher) Richard Oh, who said, 'You've got to come meet Sitok. He's one of Indonesia's best living poets'. Of course, we Aussies went, 'Yeah, yeah' -- but it turned out, he was right."

On Nothing, a collection comprising about 20 years of Sitok's work and printed by the poet's own, recently established publishing company, Kata Kita, contains both structured and unstructured poetry, and delves into themes connected to the human condition, such as love, motherhood, childbirth and racism.

Sitok read three poems from the anthology, followed by Cornall's reading in English. The evening ended on a musical note, with Cornall singing his Dance of Eucalyptus and Lover of the Sky to original compositions inspired by the poetry.

-- JP/Chisato Hara