Im Hwa

Im In-sik (Korean: 임인식; Hanja: 林仁植), better known as Im Hwa (임화; 林和; [im.hwa]; October 13, 1908 – August 6, 1953), was a Korean poet, literary critic, and politician. Born in Hanseongbu (modern-day Seoul), he became a key figure in proletarian literature during the Japanese colonial period, serving as General Secretary of the Korean Artists Proletarian Federation (KAPF). Im's work spanned across poetry, literary and film criticism, and acting. Im wrote nearly 80 poems and over 200 essays, playing a key role in modern Korean poetry, criticism, and literary studies, particularly in proletarian and leftist literature. Im is also known for short epic poetry (Danpyeon seosasi) and transplantation theory. After the 1945 liberation of Korea from Japanese colonial rule, he became a prominent North Korean poet and politician.