Agam Wispi

Agam Wispi is an Indonesian poet.

Biography Agam Wispi, the poet, was born in Pangkalan Susu, North Sumatra in 1930. He was influenced by his father, who was associated with Gezaksa, one of the most well-known theater troupes prior to World War II. Wispi began his writing career with the poem Merdeka Bernoda (Stained Freedom) which was published in the Kerakyatan, a daily newspaper in Medan.

In 1965, he was invited to Vietnam after the successful translation and publication of the poem about Bakbo Bay in a Vietnamese literary magazine. His writings during this time period were called as "Catatan Nanking". Unable to return to Indonesia he then continued to live in China. He also lived for a time in East Germany, where he studied German literature, worked in a library, and started translating Faust, which was later published by Kalam, Jakarta in 1999. his final years were spent living in the Netherlands, where he died in 2003.

Even during exile, Wispi remained creatively active and produced significant works. His play, "Gerbong" ('Boxcar') was staged by Lekra, in association with Medan Lesdra performing group (Lembaga Seni Drama, Institute of Dramatic Art). Lekra-Lesdra participated in All North Sumatra Drama Festival in 1957, where the Medan Lekra-affiliated theater group, Dinamo (Dynamo) presented Wispi's play and managed to reach the finals of the festival.

After his return to Indonesia in 1996, Wispi wrote "Pulang", another collection of his poems. He is the author of several collections of poetry.

Publications