{"id":4009,"date":"2025-04-27T11:16:35","date_gmt":"2025-04-27T15:16:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.radioenciclopedia.cu\/cultural-news\/?p=4009"},"modified":"2025-04-27T11:16:35","modified_gmt":"2025-04-27T15:16:35","slug":"alejandro-hartmann-a-tireless-defender-of-baracoa-and-its-tradition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.radioenciclopedia.cu\/cultural-news\/alejandro-hartmann-a-tireless-defender-of-baracoa-and-its-tradition-27042025\/","title":{"rendered":"Alejandro Hartmann: A Tireless Defender of Baracoa and Its Tradition"},"content":{"rendered":"

Anyone who speaks with historian and city conservator Alejandro Hartmann Matos agrees on one thing: his eyes light up when he talks about Baracoa, Cuba\u2019s primatial city. With over four decades of passionate dedication to his life\u2019s work, he uses research, reading, and the interpretation of generational knowledge\u2014along with the marks left by time itself\u2014as powerful tools in his mission to preserve and enrich the cultural heritage of his beloved hometown.<\/p>\n

Hartmann is widely recognized as a tireless advocate\u2014an energetic man driven by an extraordinary and impassioned love for the land where he was born. \u201cI am a patriot\u2014heart, spirit, and soul. I love walking through my streets and greeting my people. I\u2019m also a dreamer\u2014because one must always dream. Dreaming is essential; it inspires and elevates the human spirit.\u201d<\/p>\n

To him, Baracoa is a place of enchantment and magic\u2014not only for its wild and distinctive natural beauty but also for its people, their warmth, and their unique way of welcoming visitors. In his view, it\u2019s just as Christopher Columbus described in his journal: \u201cthe most beautiful place in the world\u201d\u2014a harmonious blend of nature\u2019s splendor and the spirit of its people.<\/p>\n

In recognition of his unwavering commitment, Hartmann was awarded the 2024 National Cultural Heritage Prize for Lifetime Achievement. This honor was granted by a distinguished panel of Cuban cultural figures, including Miguel Barnet, Lesbia Vent Dumois, Jorge Luis Aneiros, Perla Rosales Aguirreurreta, and Jorge Fern\u00e1ndez Torres. They applauded his leadership in major restoration projects such as the Matach\u00edn Museum, the Minor Basilica of Our Lady of the Assumption of Baracoa, and local fortifications. They also praised his literary contributions to heritage preservation, especially his works like \u201cDiario de Navegaci\u00f3n: Los D\u00edas de Col\u00f3n en Baracoa,\u201d \u201cCuba Ind\u00edgena Hoy,\u201d and \u201cBaracoa, la Ciudad Primada de Cuba,\u201d which document the rich historical and cultural evolution of the region.<\/p>\n

\"\"
Photo: Telecentro Solvisi\u00f3n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cI\u2019m happy because it\u2019s Baracoa that truly won the award,\u201d Hartmann remarked regarding the distinction. However, among the many honors he has received, he holds the Yunque Award, given during the city\u2019s 500th anniversary, closest to his heart\u2014a moment he describes as deeply emotional.<\/p>\n

Looking ahead, Hartmann continues to lead restoration efforts through the Office of the City Conservator. One of his top priorities is safeguarding the vernacular architecture that defines Baracoa\u2014an urban heritage constantly threatened by extreme weather events exacerbated by climate change.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese days, cyclones like Hurricane Matthew\u2014which damaged nearly a thousand rural and urban homes\u2014strike us more frequently than ever before,\u201d he noted. \u201cMore recently, Oscar hit us too. During the recovery phase, we coordinated donations for special needs schools and retirement homes, working alongside Cuba\u2019s Network of Heritage Cities, Spanish NGOs, and friends abroad. In total, we supported around 400 families and vulnerable individuals.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hartmann also shared that efforts are underway to fund heritage recovery projects through one percent of the local development budget, aligned with targeted conservation and restoration goals.<\/p>\n

He has frequently voiced concerns over the impact of U.S. sanctions on Cuba, invoking Jos\u00e9 Mart\u00ed\u2019s reference to \u201cAmerican Rome\u201d to describe the stranglehold placed on the island for more than fifty years. \u201cTo overcome these challenges, we work together\u2014with the government and our municipality. Though we lack the resources of other Cuban cities, we are firm in our resolve to fight and endure, as we always have.\u201d<\/p>\n

One of Hartmann\u2019s longstanding dreams was to establish a vocational workshop school for young people interested in restoration work. That dream has finally taken shape with the acquisition of equipment for carpentry training, thanks to international cooperation. \u201cWe also hope to introduce an archaeology program, since Baracoa boasts a wealth of rural archaeological research\u2014but we still lack a comprehensive project to preserve the city\u2019s heritage zone.\u201d<\/p>\n

Among the many highlights of his career, Hartmann recalls with pride his participation in the Amazon to Caribbean Canoe Expedition alongside renowned Cuban speleologist Antonio N\u00fa\u00f1ez Jim\u00e9nez\u2014an effort that symbolized continuity and the preservation of a legacy rooted in authenticity and cultural richness.<\/p>\n

Alejandro Hartmann Matos is a member of the Union of Writers and Artists of Cuba and holds the organization\u2019s 60th-anniversary commemorative medal. He has also been honored with the Alejo Carpentier and Ra\u00fal G\u00f3mez Garc\u00eda medals and was awarded the Order of Civil Merit, with the rank of Commander, by King Juan Carlos I of Spain.<\/p>\n

Translated by Luis E. Amador Dominguez<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Anyone who speaks with historian and city conservator Alejandro Hartmann Matos agrees on one thing: his eyes light up when he talks about Baracoa, Cuba\u2019s primatial city. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4010,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[915,916],"ppma_author":[12],"class_list":["post-4009","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-specials","tag-alejandro-hartmann","tag-baracoa"],"authors":[{"term_id":12,"user_id":0,"is_guest":1,"slug":"daynelis-rodriguez-pena","display_name":"Daynelis Rodr\u00edguez Pe\u00f1a","avatar_url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=mm&r=g","0":null,"1":"","2":"","3":"","4":"","5":"","6":"","7":"","8":""}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.radioenciclopedia.cu\/cultural-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4009","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.radioenciclopedia.cu\/cultural-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.radioenciclopedia.cu\/cultural-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.radioenciclopedia.cu\/cultural-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.radioenciclopedia.cu\/cultural-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4009"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.radioenciclopedia.cu\/cultural-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4009\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4012,"href":"https:\/\/www.radioenciclopedia.cu\/cultural-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4009\/revisions\/4012"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.radioenciclopedia.cu\/cultural-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4010"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.radioenciclopedia.cu\/cultural-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4009"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.radioenciclopedia.cu\/cultural-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4009"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.radioenciclopedia.cu\/cultural-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4009"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.radioenciclopedia.cu\/cultural-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/ppma_author?post=4009"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}