Istanbul to host poets at a fest

ISTANBUL - Anatolia News Agency

The festival takes its name from a flower that grows only in Istanbul’s Aydos Forestry area, Istanbulensis.

The 2nd International Istanbulensis Poetry Festival, organized by Sultanbeyli Municipality, will be held from March 6 to 9 with the participation of 52 poets from Turkey and around the world. 

The festival was launched at a press conference yesterday, where Sultanbeyli Mayor Hüseyin Keskin said that their goal was to make the neighborhood into a valley of education and culture with such festivals. 

The coordinator of the festival, Özcan Ünlü, said that poetry festivals were being held in many parts of Turkey but they wanted to make their festival more meaningful with a rich program and big awards. “A poet who attends the festival cannot attend it again for the following three years. In this way we try to invite different poets,” he said.

The festival bears the name of the Istanbulensis flower that grows only in the Aydos Forestry area within the borders of the Sultanbeyli neighborhood. The flower was introduced to the world in 1982 by British scientist Brian Mathew. 

In the opening of the event on March 6 at the Cemal Reşit Rey Concert (CRR) Concert Hall, poets will conduct readings before Bülent Ortaçgil and Birsen Tezet take the stage. 

With the slogan “four continents, single verse, Istanbul,” the festival will host special events organized in cooperation with schools as part of the festival. Children’s literature poets and writers will also present their works. 

As part of the festival, a special event for women will be held on March 8, International Women’s Day. Female poets will read their poems in the event at the Sultanbeyli Municipality Culture Center. Among these poets will be Ayşe Sevim, Gonca Özmen, Hayriye Ünal, Anna Santoliquido, Fatma Sadık, Sharerh Kamrani, Çulpan Zaripova, Ferqane Mehdiyeva, Tanagöz İlyasova and Fatena Al-Ghorra. 

In the closing ceremony of the festival on March 9 at the Sultanbeyli Municipality Culture Center, Feridun Düzağaç will perform a concert after the presentation of the awards. 

Further information about the festival can be found on www.istanbulensissiir.org.