Margarito Cuellar at the Shanghai International Poetry Festival

Poetry is a profound journey, a realization echoed by many poets across different eras in literary history.

Margarito Cuellar affirms this sentiment through his latest venture to China, where he actively participated in the Shanghai International Poetry Festival. During this event, he introduced “El silencio y el sonido de las cosas,” his inaugural poetry collection entirely translated into Chinese.

Between December 1 and 6, 2023, Cuellar actively engaged in this longstanding oriental festival. The release of his poetry book marks the pinnacle of the poet’s connection with Chinese literature, initiated in 2013 through festival involvements and the translation of some of Margarito’s poems featured in the country’s prominent literary publications.

“The translator, Zhao Lihong, is of my generation, born in the fifties, and is part of a group known as ‘The dark poets.’ This designation is given to those who experienced the cultural revolution during their childhood and adolescence, a complex period for poets as the arts were increasingly governed by ideological norms, intertwining opera and literature within a broader ideological framework.”

Poetics of artificial intelligence 

The festival’s primary focus was on artificial intelligence (AI), prompting attendees to engage in discussions about the evolving role of AI in various facets of life and its implications for the future of humanity.

“The Silence and the Sound of Things” has been translated by Zhao Lihong and is available in both Chinese and English versions.

“In our discussions during the Shanghai panel, many of us reached the consensus that emotional intelligence ultimately complements rather than conflicts with artificial intelligence. While AI has made significant strides, even producing books created by robots, it is unlikely to replace human intelligence entirely,” stated Cuellar.

Cuellar himself described “El silencio y el sonido de las cosas” as an oriental book during his lecture, where approximately 600 students were in attendance.