Ubud Writers and Readers Festival

[Audio] UWRF13: Reflections of Afghanistan

Ubud Writers and Readers Festival 2013 Reflections of Afghanistan : Ben Quilty, Agustinus Wibowo & Michael Vatikiotis Forgotten wars & forgotten people. Hear from two individuals who have made the journey to Afghanistan to record the lives of the people there through their images. What does it look like through their eyes? Indus, 15 October 2013 http://www.ubudwritersfestival.com/audio/reflections-of-afghanistan-ben-quilty-agustinus-wibowo-michael-vatikiotis/ Featuring: Ben Quilty Ben Quilty has been widely recognised for his artwork. Quilty’s paintings of his Holden Torana produced a sell-out show in 2002 and since then his work has been seen in many exhibits and art fairs. Some of his work can be seen at the Art Gallery of New South Wales and the Museum of Contemporary Art. Quilty won the Doug Moran Portrait Prize in 2009 for his painting Jimmy Barnes, ‘There but for the Grace of God Go I, no.2′. In the same year Quilty was named runner up in the Archibald Prize [read more]

December 5, 2013 // 0 Comments

[Audio] UWRF2013: Travellers

Ubud Writers and Readers Festival 2013 Travellers : Trinity, Don George, Tony Wheelers, Agustinus Wibowo & Lisa Dempster Travel – from the beginning of Lonely Planet to today, we track the journey of travel writing. Who are the travel writers these days, does what they say still have an impact or have we all become travel writers? Neka, 13 October 2014 http://www.ubudwritersfestival.com/audio/travellers-trinity-don-george-tony-wheelers-agustinus-wibowo-lisa-dempster/ Featuring: Agustinus Wibowo Agustinus Wibowo is an Indonesian travel writer whose travel experiences have taken him through Asia to the Middle East. He is fascinated by cultures and traditions and is curious about how the world works as one when it is constantly divided by history and culture. He prefers to travel overland when he can and once entered Tibet by pretending to be a Chinese citizen. He also volunteered to help victims of a natural disaster in Kashmir, before deciding on a career in [read more]

December 5, 2013 // 0 Comments

[Audio] UWRF2013: Memoir

Ubud Writers and Readers Festival 2013 Memoir : Bernice Chauly, Salena Godden, Agustinus Wibowo & Janet Steele In life there are short stories, big stories, stories that end well & ones that don’t. Would you share them all, or put a shiny & more exciting glaze over them? How do these writers go about writing their memoir – how much is truth & how much is fiction? Left Bank, 13 October 2013 http://www.ubudwritersfestival.com/audio/memoir-bernice-chauly-salena-godden-agustinus-wibowo-janet-steele/ Featuring: Bernice Chauly Bernice Chauly is a Malaysian writer, poet and teacher. Born in George Town, Penang, to Chinese-Punjabi teachers, she read Education and English Literature in Canada as a government scholar. For over 20 years, she has worked extensively in the creative industries as a writer, photographer, actor and film maker and has won multiple awards for her work and her contribution to the arts. In 1998, she began organising literary events and, in [read more]

December 5, 2013 // 0 Comments

Travel and Escape (2013): Are Travel Writers Obsolete?

http://www.travelandescape.ca/2013/11/are-travel-writers-obsolete/ Not too long ago, travellers communicated with home via letters and the beloved blue-paper aerogram. Nowadays we text, email and update social media from even some of the farthest reaches of the world. It’s easy to tell our stories and the internet is flooded with blogs, Facebook updates and reviews from travellers worldwide. With this new information-sharing culture, are traditional travel writers and their stories going to become obsolete?This was the question asked of travel writing experts—Tony Wheeler, founder of Lonely Planet, Don George, editor of National Geographic Traveller, and Agustinus Wibowo, a leading Indonesian travel writer—at the 2013 Ubud Writers and Readers Festival in Bali. Here are their responses:Credit: Victoria Watts Tony Wheeler: I don’t think travel writers will become obsolete. People are still going to want information in a trusted fashion. However, the way we get that [read more]

November 27, 2013 // 0 Comments

National Geographic (2013): Literary Magic in Bali

http://intelligenttravel.nationalgeographic.com/2013/11/12/literary-magic-in-bali/ Literary Magic in Bali Posted by Don George of National Geographic Traveler in Travel with Heart on November 12, 2013 Last month I had the opportunity to participate for the second year in a row in the Ubud Writers & Readers Festival on the Indonesian island of Bali. At the six-day festival, I taught two travel writing workshops, spoke on a panel about the evolution of the genre, and hosted a luncheon conversation with the co-founders of Lonely Planet, Maureen and Tony Wheeler. Celebrating its tenth anniversary, this year’s fest was the biggest gathering yet, with more than 200 authors, musicians, and performers from more than 20 countries participating, and many hundreds of literature-lovers from around the Pacific Rim, Southeast Asia, and beyond attending. As with last year, I was exhilarated to encounter in panels and dinners and performances acclaimed and groundbreaking journalists, [read more]

November 12, 2013 // 0 Comments

Speak Without Interruption (2013): Give Afghanistan back to the Afghans

http://www.speakwithoutinterruption.com/site/2013/10/ubud-encounters-give-afghanistan-back-to-the-afghans/ October 20, 2013 Ubud encounters: Give Afghanistan back to the Afghans Posted by Muhammad Cohen in: Art, Asia, Books, China, Faith, Foreign Affairs, Immigration, Islam, Journalism, Military, Religion, Sociology, Terrorism, Travel, War, Women’s Rights, World Issues Australian painter Ben Quilty and Indonesian writer Agustinus Wibowo told the Ubud Writers and Readers Festival in Bali how they each reached Afghanistan by different routes for different reasons. But following their stays, they both also reached the same conclusion: after a dozen years and thousands of casualties, it’s time for Afghanistan to solve its problems without foreign help. Wibowo came to Afghanistan for the first time as a curious and footloose traveler. In Afghanistan as well as Pakistan, Wibowo said that since he came from Indonesia, people assumed he was Muslim. Telling them he was an ethic Chinese [read more]

October 20, 2013 // 1 Comment

Appearance in Ubud Writers and Readers Festival 2011

http://ubudwritersfestival.com/writer/agustinus-wibowo Agustinus Wibowo is an Indonesian travel writer, travelled overland from Beijing to Central Asia and Middle East. He traveled extensively and settled in Afghanistan as journalist for three years. His works include Selimut Debu (A Blanket of Dust) and Garis Batas (Borderlines). Festival Appearances Time travel Saturday, 8 October 2011 10:45 Left Bank Lounge What is the future of travel writing and how do travellers utilise the genre? Has it all been said and done? Brian Thacker, Fiona Caulfield, Trinity, Agustinus Wibowo Chair: Peta Mathias Ticketed A blanket of dust… Saturday, 8 October 2011 13:45 Left Bank Lounge Standing at the cutting edge of Indonesian literature, this modern day wanderer has travelled to the ends of the earth, living in Afghanistan for three years. Wander with him in this intimate session. Agustinus Wibowo with Jamie James Worlds, in words: making language work Saturday, 8 October 2011 16:00 Neka Museum How [read more]

September 23, 2011 // 0 Comments