Iwan Simatupang (1928-1970) studied anthropology and drama at Leiden University in the Netherlands and philosophy at the Sorbonne, France. He then returned to Indonesia and married a Dutch pianist. His novels are The Redness of Red (1968), The Pilgrim (1969), and Drought (1972, post-mortem). The Redness of Red won an ational literary award in 1970. In 1977, The Pilgrim was awarded the First ASEAN Literary Award. Iwan Simatupang also wrote many poems, short s tories, and plays—all notable for their avant-garde form. He was also a journalist. His columns frequently focused on Indonesia’s marginalized communities.
