Representatives from the French Embassy in China and the Alliance Francaise pose for a group photo at Yilin Press on Sept 21.

Representatives from the French Embassy in China and the Alliance Francaise, an international organization that aims to promote the French language and francophone culture around the world, visited Yilin Press in Nanjing on Sept 21.

The delegation included Laurence Mezin, cultural and education cooperation counselor at the French Embassy in China; Anais Maro, coordination officer for Alliance Française in China; and directors from 11 Alliance Française centers located in major Chinese cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, Nanjing, Guangzhou, Chengdu, and Hangzhou.

During the visit, Chen Min, head of Yilin Press, and Chen Ye, deputy editor-in-chief of the publishing house, had a meeting with the French representatives. Both parties exchanged ideas on topics such as the translation and publication of French literature, youth reading promotion, and Sino-French cultural exchange.

The discussions highlighted the decades-long collaboration between Yilin Press and the French-speaking world. They explored projects like the reprinting of classic works, the development of graphic novels, and exhibitions of illustration art.

Plans were made to further promote cultural exchanges between China and France through the continued promotion of classics like In Search of Lost Time, a cherished novel by French author Marcel Proust, and the French copyrights distribution of the graphic novel of The Three-Body Problem. The collaboration aims to reach young readers through cultural activities facilitated by platforms like the Alliance Française.

Commemorative collector's edition of In Search of Lost Time.

The meeting was followed by a tour of the Yilin Press facilities.

Yilin Press is renowned for its expertise in translating and publishing foreign literature, with a deep catalog of French literary works. The press has published classics such as In Search of Lost Time and The Stranger by Albert Camus.

Its translations have on multiple occasions won the Fu Lei Translation and Publishing Award. This annual literary prize, established in 2009, recognizes outstanding translations of French-language works into Chinese in order to honor the legacy of the renowned translator Fu Lei while promoting cultural exchange between France and China.

In recent years, Yilin Press has actively exported copyrights to the French-speaking world. This year, it has collaborated with Alliance Francaise in Nanjing to host an exhibition of illustrations by French artists, honoring children's literature classics and continuing to promote Sino-French publishing dialogue and cultural exchange.

Moving forward, Yilin Press plans to establish regular communication with the French Embassy in China and Alliance Francaise to advance collaborations in the translation of classic literary works, graphic novels, texts for young readers, and exhibitions of illustrative works, thereby supporting the integration of Chinese and French literary publishing and cross-cultural talent development.