Under the slogan 'Overflowing Creativity', the Minister for Culture and Sport, Miquel Iceta, this morning presented Spain's programme as Guest of Honour at the Frankfurt Book Fair 2022, in which almost 200 authors in all the languages of Spain will take part.
The event, held at the Goethe-Institut in Madrid, was also attended by the curator of the project, Elvira Marco, and the president of the Spanish Publishers' Guild Federation, Daniel Fernández. The author Irene Vallejo, representing the dozens of authors who are taking part in the literary programme of the Fair, and the director of the Frankfurt Book Fair, Juergen Boos, were also present.
During his speech, the Minister for Culture and Sport highlighted the importance of the Frankfurt Book Fair, the close cultural ties that exist between Spain and Germany, and the great opportunity and challenge that being the Guest of Honour of this edition represents for our country.
"For all these reasons, I am convinced that our presence in Frankfurt will be a milestone in the cultural renaissance we are about to experience after two years of pandemic," he said.
Spain has been working for several years on its proposal for the Book Fair, which will be held from 19 to 23 October 2022.
The curator of the project, Elvira Marco, has been in charge of presenting our country's literary and professional programme for the current edition of the Fair and has announced the programme that will take place the 2,000 m2 of the Spanish Pavilion in Frankfurt. "It is time to show the results of four years' work. We are introducing ourselves with the already achieved goal of promoting the translation of our authors and the internationalisation of the publishing sector, with more than 300 new titles published since 2019 and 150 launches in Germany in 2022," she detailed.
Marco highlighted the diversity in terms of genres - ranging from narrative, to non-fiction, and including poetry and graphic novels - and the fact that both contemporary and classic Spanish-language authors have been considered for this important event. "The programme has been decided together with the sector to showcase the literary creativity and strength of the Spanish publishing industry".
Pillars of the project
The project is based on the pillars of linguistic plurality, bibliodiversity, the value of Spanish as a bridge to Latin America, and the values of equality and diversity in Spanish society. These are the foundations on which the literary programme is constructed, with the support of an advisory committee. There will be novels, essays, poetry, plays, children's and young people's literature, comics and illustrated albums.
Daniel Fernández, President of the Spanish Publishers' Federation, also emphasised the importance of the Spain Project as Guest of Honour at the Frankfurt Book Fair: "It will allow us to show the strength of Spanish creation and publishing internationally. We are a country that stands out for its rich publishing output, both in Spanish and in the state's other languages, and the programme presented is a reflection of this".
Fernández added that being Guest of Honour 31 years later will enable us to show the changes that Spain has undergone in the intervening years. "Therefore, it reflects the fact that our country rejoined Europe and also our great publishing potential that is now more than confirmed".
Irene Vallejo, author of the literary phenomenon El Infinito en un Junco, with 400,000 copies sold in Spain and published and translated in more than 35 countries, took the floor on behalf of the dozens of writers and illustrators who will form part of the powerful and diverse literary programme of Spain Guest of Honour at the Frankfurt Book Fair.
"We have reason to hope. We universally agree that reading is a healthy and recommended activity. Moreover, if the desire to read survives the continuous enumeration of its virtues and benefits, it means that it is a truly invincible appetite," she said.
Vallejo praised the work of translators. "It paves the way for us to know and read each other without borders," she said. She also valued the work of literary fairs, which she called "invitations to be more cosmopolitan".
Frankfurt Book Fair director Juergen Boos emphasised that Spain, as Guest of Honour, "will reflect the multilingual and vibrant literature and culture of today's Spain and offer the attending public a contemporary approach to 'Overflowing Creativity'. Visitors to the fair in October will be able to discover the varied Spanish publishing scene".
Institutional presence
The director general of Books and Reading Promotion, María Jose Gálvez, the president of Acción Cultural Española (AC/E), José Andrés Torres Mora, and the minister-counsellor of the German embassy in Spain, Christoph Wolfrum, were also present at the event.
The press conference highlighted the importance of the event for Spanish literature and the book industry, in addition to its potential to cross borders and strengthen ties between an international community of readers and professionals.
Being Guest of Honour at the largest international book fair will allow Spain's book sector to break into new markets. Since 2019, the Ministry of Culture and Sport and AC/E have invested a total of 800,000 euros a year in translations, prioritising the German market.
The Spain Guest of Honour at the Frankfurt Book Fair 2022 project is directed by the Ministry of Culture and Sport through the Directorate General for Books and Reading Promotion, together with Acción Cultural Española (AC/E) and the Spanish Publishers' Guild Federation.
Non official translation
