The 17th Yi Yuk-sa Poetry Literary Award Winner is Poet Lee Jae-mu for 'Death in Death Valley'

Poet Lee Jaemu.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Dongwook Park] Poet Lee Jaemu, who published the poetry collection (The Beginning of a Thousand Years, 2019), has been selected as the winner of the 17th Yi Yuksa Poetry Literary Award hosted by the major regional private broadcaster TBC.

According to the Yi Yuksa Literature Museum located in Andong, Gyeongbuk, the 17th recipient of the literary award, established in 2004 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the birth of the national poet Yi Yuksa, is poet Lee Jaemu.

The final judging panel consisted of poets Oh Se-young, Kwon Dal-woong, Jo Yong-mi, and critics Koo Mo-ryong and Oh Min-seok. The judges explained the selection reason, stating, "Lee Jaemu’s honestly reveals not only the world but also himself, expressing it in a new form, and his poems align with the spirit of Yi Yuksa."

The prize money for the Yi Yuksa Poetry Literary Award is 20 million won. The award ceremony will be held on August 8th at 2 p.m. at the Yi Yuksa Literature Museum, together with the 17th Yi Yuksa Literary Festival.

Poet Lee Jaemu, the recipient of this award, was born in 1958 in Buyeo, Chungnam, and graduated from the Graduate School of Korean Language and Literature at Dongguk University. He began his literary career in 1983 with and has published poetry collections such as , , and . He has received numerous awards including the 17th Yusim Work Award (Poetry category), the 3rd Songsu-gwon Poetry Literary Award, the 2nd Pulkkot Literary Award, the 27th Sowol Poetry Literary Award, and the 1st Yun Dong-ju Literary Award.

Meanwhile, the birthplace of Yi Yuksa (1904?1944) in Woncheon-ri, Dosan-myeon, Andong City, is home to the Yi Yuksa Literature Museum, established in 2004. To honor the spirit of the national poet Yi Yuksa, Andong City established and operates the museum on a 7,700 square meter site, investing a total of 2.19 billion won, including 600 million won from the national government and 300 million won from the provincial government.