Ezequiel Martinez (second from left), director general of the Buenos Aires International Book Fair, on June 26 shows a map of the event to a delegation from the Publication Industry Promotion Agency of Korea at a seminar room in Seoul's Gangnam-gu District. (Korean Foundation for International Cultural Exchange)

By Kim Hyelin

The Buenos Aires International Book Fair of Argentina, the largest event of its kind in the Spanish-speaking world, wants Korea as the guest country of honor in the gala's 2028 edition.

Ezequiel Martinez, the fair's director general, on June 27 told Korea.net in an interview at the Plaza Hotel in Seoul's Jung-gu District, "Following Peru in 2026 and Spain in 2027, I want to invite Korea in 2028," calling this "the most important purpose" of his visit to Seoul.

His trip was sponsored by the K-Fellowship hosted by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and organized by the Korea Foundation for International Cultural Exchange.

Launched in 1975, the fair is the largest cultural event in Latin America, attracting over a million visitors annually. Marking its 50th anniversary this year, the function has expanded its "guest city" system to the invitation of a guest country.

The Korean Cultural Center (KCC) in the Argentine capital this year from April 23 to May 11 ran a booth at the 50th Buenos Aires International Book Fair at the convention center La Rural. (KCC in Argentina)

Martinez based his interest in Korea on the long-standing readership of Korean literature in the Spanish-speaking world. Han Kang's acclaimed novel "The Vegetarian" in 2012 was published in Spanish by the independent Buenos Aires publisher Bajo la Luna through the efforts of translator Yun Sunme. This was the work's first edition in Latin America and preceded those in English, French, Italian and German.

Interest in Han's works has shot up since she won the 2024 Nobel Prize in Literature. "Han Kang's book rose again on the bestseller list at this year's (Buenos Aires) book fair," Martinez said.

Hwarang, an independent publisher of Korean literature launched in 2019, has put out over 30 books by domestic novelists including Park Min-gyu, Hwang Sok-yong and Yi Sang. Fiordo, an independent publisher in Argentina that printed Kim Hye-jin's "About My Daughter," as well as global giants Random House and Grupo Planeta, are also releasing more works by Korean authors in Spanish.

"The number of people learning Korean is steadily increasing, and reading groups for Korean literature are also active," Martinez said, stressing the need to train more personnel who can translate directly from Korean to Spanish.

On the plan to launch a graduate school of translation by the Literature Translation Institute of Korea in Seoul, he said, "Such a plan demonstrates the importance Korea places on training translators."

Ezequiel Martinez (right), director general of the Buenos Aires International Book Fair, on June 23 speaks to Woo Suk-kyun, director of the Institute for Latin American Studies at Seoul National University, at the institute in Seoul's Gwanak-gu District. (Korea Foundation for International Cultural Exchange)

During his visit to Korea, Martinez spoke to an array of domestic authors. He discussed operation of the fair with "The Second Chance Convenience Store" writer Kim Ho-yeon, who attended this year's event in Buenos Aires. Chung Bora also got an official invitation to next year's edition.

"I make a note of names that repeatedly come up from many people," the director general said, adding that he listened to the opinions of many authors including Kim Yeonsu, Son Won-pyung and Kim Hye-jin on the selection of prospective invitees.

He cited healing, original fantasy and contemporary social issues as trending themes in Korean literature. On works dealing with social issues such as "About My Daughter," he said they "possess a universality that resonates with anyone rather than being stories unique to Korea."

He praised Chung's short story collection "Cursed Bunny," saying, "I've never seen a work like this before." Claiming the book "cannot be classified into any single category like science fiction, magical realism, fantasy or horror," he added, "I have no idea where on Earth such imagination comes from."

The guest country event Martinez proposes is a festival going beyond the main book fair, allowing am experience in the invited country's culture in Buenos Aires.

"When Korea comes, I want to introduce Korean culture in its entirety including art and food by connecting it with Buenos Aires' leading cultural spaces such as the National Museum of Fine Arts, (opera house) Teatro Colon and (cultural complex) Libertad Palace," he said.

"Argentine readers already have a considerable amount of curiosity and interest in Korea," he added at the end of the interview. "If Korea becomes the guest country of honor, this will generate more buzz than any other country."

Ezequiel Martinez (right), director general of the Buenos Aires International Book Fair, on June 24 tours the Seoul International Book Fair at the convention center Coex in Seoul's Gangnam-gu District. (Korea Foundation for International Cultural Exchange)