Artist Talk with KIM Hong-mo & HUR Eun-sil, Author of Soyo & Resilience Exploring Jeju Haenyeo

Tickets

Cost: Free

Featured Books & Artists: Uprising 소요 by Kim Hong-mo and A Time for Recovery 회복기 by Hur Eun-shil.

KPop Demon Hunters, the Korean drama When Life Gives You Tangerines, and We Do Not Part by Nobel Prize–winning author Han Kang.
What do these stories have in common?
Jeju.
Why do so many captivating stories begin on this island?
Hallasan Mountain and volcanic oreum, the sea and winds that have shaped Jeju’s extraordinary landscape. The haenyeo-women divers who have built their lives around the sea. The painful memories of the Jeju 4·3, and the distinctive Jeju language.
More than a beautiful island destination, Jeju is an “island of stories,” shaped by generations of lives, history, and memories.
At the Vancouver Korean Book Festival, we invite you to discover a deeper side of Jeju—one you may not have encountered before.
Cartoonist Kim Hong-mo, author of Uprising (『소요』), brings to life the anti-colonial resistance of Jeju’s haenyeo during the Japanese occupation of Korea. Joining him is Heo Eun-sil, poet and author of A Time for Recovery (『회복기』), who is also a practicing haenyeo, diving into the waters of Jeju herself.
An artist who records the history of the haenyeo through drawings.
A poet who writes while living the life of a haenyeo today.
Together, they share stories of the sea and its women, history and literature, and the lives of the people of Jeju.
Meet the Speakers & Moderator

KIM Hong-mo
Kim Hong-mo majored in Oriental Painting at Hongik University. Through his expressive brushwork, he explores the marginalized stories of modern Korean history and the deep-rooted myths of Jeju Island. His powerful graphic novels, such as Soyo and Island of the Gods, capture the struggles and resilience of ordinary people, while children’s comics like My Friend Maro demonstrate his wide-ranging artistic work.

Heo Eun-sil
Heo Eun-sil is a poet and practising haenyeo, one of Jeju Island’s women divers. Through performances combining her poetry with traditional Jeju folk songs, she brings to life the stories of Jeju’s women, the sea, and island communities. Her works include the poetry collections I Am Sad for a Moment and A Time for Recovery, the essay collection A Diary Written Tomorrow, and Voices of Memory, an oral history of the Jeju April 3 Incident. Through poetry and storytelling, she preserves the life, memory, and language of Jeju.

JAYEE Yumin Lee | Moderator
Jayee Yumin Lee is an author and publisher of NEWS M. With a long career as a broadcast writer and journalist, she has focused on stories of people, society, and culture. Now working between the United States and Canada, she develops cultural and literary projects that connect people and communities through journalism, books, and the arts.
Go beyond the Jeju you already know.

Discover the deeper, captivating stories of Jeju, the Island of Stories.
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