The auditorium of Jameos del Agua hosted the grand finale of the celebration of the life and work of José Saramago for his centenary. This culminates the program of activities that have been developed throughout the last year on the occasion of the centenary of the birth of the writer, journalist and playwright, named Adopted Son of Lanzarote in 1997.
In her speech, the president of the Cabildo of Lanzarote, María Dolores Corujo, wanted to remember Saramago as "the citizen aware of his time, thanks to his civic example and his deep reflection on the human condition, who assumed as his main objectives the dissemination of literature, the defense of Human Rights and the utmost care of the environment."
"By commemorating his centenary, we renew our commitment to those words he uttered when he was declared Adopted Son of the island in which he bet on the weak in a radically unjust society, for the ethics of love and solidarity, for the humanization of life, for reason, for dignity and for culture," said the president of the Cabildo.
Corujo, finally, wanted to thank the Minister of Culture, Alberto Aguiar, and the entire team of the area for the great work done during these months, together with the José Saramago Foundation, in which readings have been organized in educational centers, exhibitions, dance, staging of his theatrical works, an opera based on his work, music, talks, book presentations or recitals on his poetry.
The event began with the screening of the audiovisual work "Saramago, encounters with the landscape", directed by the Lanzarote artist Ildefonso Aguilar, where the Portuguese Nobel Prize winner travels the impassive lava of the Volcán del Cuervo, a place of great influence in his existence, according to the words of the author himself. The nature and volcanic landscape of this area are, through the eyes of Saramago, the protagonists of this audiovisual work in which the images and sounds bring us closer to his sensitivity.
Farewell with the voice of Teresa Salgueiro
The final point of this event with the celebration of the life and work of Saramago was put by the Portuguese singer Teresa Salgueiro, representative of the emblematic genre of Portuguese fado outside its borders. The lyricist and composer presented the interpretation of her enormous repertoire through a show in which she celebrated with the public the plurality of her musical facets, bringing to Lanzarote the depth of the Portuguese musical tradition.
