Vietnam, Morocco, Chile, Spain, Brazil, France and, of course, Portugal are the places of origin of the poets invited to the second edition of the International Poetry in the South, which will take place from October 21st to 30th, in Olhão.
The poet Fernando Cabrita, the meeting's commissioner, classified the event as “an initiative that greatly ennobles Olhão and which this year has grown, both in terms of the guest poets and the public that will visit us, and in terms of the areas of activity art included in the program, ranging from poetry to music, through theater, dance, cinema and plastic arts”.
Fernando Cabrita also anticipated that, thanks to the synergy achieved between the various participants in the organization, “we will risk in the coming years to be hosts of the best literary festival, not in the south of the country, but in the south of Madrid”.
The event was presented to the public this Thursday, October 13th, in a session in which the mayor António Miguel Pina took the opportunity to declare his satisfaction with the success of the first edition of the Meeting, “which made our boldness grow this year, and we dared to internationalize this initiative even more”.
After thanking Fernando Cabrita for his commitment as commissioner of Poesia a Sul, the mayor highlighted the fact that this has been, since the beginning, a winning bet. As “an initiative that was conceived and put on the ground as imminently cultural, it has gained, thanks to the number of public and participants who visit us these days, a touristic nature that makes us very proud, to the point of having, this year, deserved on its part. from the Tourism Fund, financing for cultural events that encourage tourism activity”.
The II International Poesia a Sul Meeting – Olhão 2016 is therefore an opportunity for poets from the most diverse origins and languages to meet, for 10 days of exchange, sharing, lectures, debates, round tables, book presentations, readings, tributes , exhibitions and socializing, in an initiative that the organization intends to be open to the participation of the general public.
In all, there are about 15 book presentations scheduled during the event, which has a parallel diversified and attractive entertainment program, starting with the poetry and music show starring Napoleão Mira and Reflect, scheduled for the day of start-up, at the Municipal Auditorium, and whose revenues revert to ADAPO – Association for the Defense of Animals and Plants of Olhão.
During the event, two exhibitions will be on display at the Municipal Auditorium, one on drawing and the other on sculpture, by Joana Rosa Bragança and Alberto German, respectively.
The poem Howl, by Allen Ginsberg, will also be the pretext for the exhibition of the homonymous film, to take place on the 26th, at the Sociedade Recreativa Progresso Olhanense, promoted by the Clube de Cinema de Olhão.
The 2016 edition of the International Poesia a Sul Meeting will also be marked by three tributes: to Casimiro de Brito, an Algarve poet, novelist and essayist with an international dimension with 56 published books; Florindo de Sousa, host from Olhão, where he is known by everyone as “the street poet”, and Rafael Vargas, promoter and promoter of Andalusian writers and letters, who will see his work and artistic and human solidarity recognized.
The Meeting will also be marked by the first edition of the João Lúcio School Literary Prize, aimed at students from the 3rd Cycle of the municipality, whose objective is to stimulate the production of original poetry among young people and pay homage to João Lúcio, the greatest figure of Portuguese poetry, born in Olhão.
From the verses of the poet “Oh my ardent impressionist and soft Algarve, My beautiful lazy man asleep in the sun”, the young people are invited to write two unpublished poems. Winners will be announced on October 30th, at the closing session of the event.
The inaugural session of the II International Poetry Meeting in the South – Olhão 2016, taking place at the Salão Nobre dos Paços do Concelho on the 21st, at 18 pm, will be attended by the mayor António Miguel Pina, among other individuals.
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