Over and above audience development, market access and book sales for published poets, event organiser at Hear My Voice Ishmael Sibiya says travelling opens the door to cultural diplomacy.
Travelling creates space for collaboration, exchange and co-creation. Poets who travel abroad, for instance, become ambassadors of South African art.
Travelling locally, Sibiya adds, allows poets to reach new audiences and connect with different creative communities across provinces.
He shared these views during our interview after a panel discussion at a poetry event hosted by the Word N Sound Live Literature Company.
Taking place at the Goethe-Institut in Johannesburg last month, the panel, which included Sibiya, reflected on the role of travelling and collaborations for poets.