The Lagos International Poetry Festival 2020 takes place against the backdrop of a global pandemic with the theme Love & Light and Other Clichés, a mediation on the ‘tender gravity of kindness.’ In a year that reminds us of the fragility and interconnectedness of the human experience, this year’s festival reconsiders the tools available to us in confronting the daily violence of existence, the limits of bottom-line thinking, and the indispensability of art and poetry in helping us reengage with a world we take for granted.
In response to safety priorities, the Lagos International Poetry Festival will host its first wholly virtual festival, embracing the opportunity it presents for wider reach and participation. LIPFest2020’s digital experience will also celebrate literary and performance art as a reflection of human adaptability, connectedness and innovation.
Given the essential and urgent need for art as a tool for contemplating the time, the festival will now begin on the 1st of October 2020 and run till the 1 st of November 2020, with a series of workshops, conversations, and readings. It will feature 25 poets, artists and performers from across the world and will host over 20 events including performances, conversations, virtual open mics, workshops, and events for children.