Debate About Catalan Culture

In the summer of 1967, five leading intellectuals (Josep Maria Castellet, Josep Ferrater Mora, Joan Fuster, Joaquim Molas and Baltasar Porcel), met at Porcel’s house in Vallvidrera to talk about Catalan culture. Despite living under a regime of censorship and persecution, culture was seeking to be modern and open up to Europe. Among other issues, they dealt with previously agreed subjects such as the role of the intellectual, language and culture, differing realities in Catalonia, Mallorca and Valencia, cultural problems in the Spanish state, and cultural projection on society. 

Fifty years later, despite our markedly different social, economic and political context, the debate is still very much relevant. To mark the publication by L’Avenç of those conversations, published now for the first time, Maria Bohigas, Najat El Hachmi, Àngels Margarit, Mercè Picornell and Simona Škrabec, five leading women in present-day Catalan culture, pick up that dialogue. After an initial meeting behind closed doors, like in 1967, this latest conversation will have its public presentation at the CCCB with the aim of sharing a diagnosis of the present-day situation and outlining possible future directions.

The dialogue will be moderated by Esther Vera, editor of Ara newspaper.