Asif Khan

Director

About me: I was appointed Director of the SPL from June 2016. 

I grew up in Dundee and studied Film and Media Studies with Marketing at the University of Stirling. I have spent much of my professional career in Bristol and London in business development, marketing and engagement roles across cultural platforms; including public libraries, performing arts venues and art galleries.

Following the success of co-producing the Yardstick Festival in Bristol and Bath (2012 & 2013) – showcasing contemporary poets and writers from the African Diaspora – I was invited by the Government of Jamaica to stage a showcase event with their new Poet Laureate, Mervyn Morris, and emerging Jamaican writers (2014). I also produced a poetry festival on the theme of Climate Change for Bristol and Bath Festival of Nature (2015).

My favourite poetry quote is: ““Out of used furniture she made a tree.” Anne Sexton

My favourite poets are: Robert Burns, Lorna Goodison, Ted Hughes, Dylan Thomas, Anne Sexton.