32nd Havana Book Fair 2024 and art teachers at the centre of the week’s programme

The 32nd Havana International Book Fair is at the forefront of this week’s activities programmed by the Ministry of Culture.

This literary event, which opens this Thursday at the San Carlos de la Cabaña fortress, is dedicated to the intellectuals Isabel Monal and Francisco López Sacha and, as guest country, the Federative Republic of Brazil.

During these days, several personalities of Cuban culture will receive awards, among them María Elena Llama, winner of the National Prize for Literature; Juan Jesús Guanche, winner of the National Prize for Social and Human Sciences; and Enrique Pérez Díaz, winner of the National Prize for Publishing.

The colloquium on the work of López Sacha will take place on Saturday, with the participation of Senel Paz, Laidi Fernández de Juan and Arturo Arango. The event will be moderated by Yessica Arteaga, who will present the book Voy a escribir la eternidad, winner of the Alejo Carpentier Novel Prize.

Day of the art teacher

The main event will be held on 18 February, the birthday of Olga Alonso, art and theatre teacher, an event forever linked to national culture and, in particular, art education.

The venue will be the socio-cultural project Casa Yeti Creative Artistic Community, in the Havana municipality of Playa.

During the ceremony, a representation of the Amateur Artists Movement will perform and prizes and awards will be presented. There will also be a collective exhibition, the result of the work of the members of the workshop of the aforementioned project.

As part of the day, the 50th anniversary of the guerrillas will be celebrated in schools and communities in all the country’s municipalities from Tuesday to Sunday 18th.

On Wednesday, at the Alejo Carpentier Dance School in Vedado, there will be a panel discussion on culture and humanism, as well as a meeting with the founders of the Schools of Art Instructors – Olga Alonso’s fellow students – and the Olga Alonso National Awards.

On Saturday, the Festival of the Book and its Colours will be held at the Pabellón Cuba in Havana, with an extensive programme of artistic sessions and socio-cultural projects resulting from the work of the Art Instructors.

Translated by Luis E. Amador Dominguez