The César Manrique Foundation (FCM) is organizing a round table entitled "José Ramírez Cerdá and César Manrique: myth and reality" next Wednesday, September 18, at 7:00 p.m., in the José Saramago room of La Plazuela (Arrecife). Luis Fajardo, Saúl García, Álvaro García González, Antonio González Viéitez, and Enrique Pérez Parrilla will participate. This activity, which will be moderated by journalists Soraya Morales and Manuel Riveiro, is part of the program for the centenary of the artist's birth, which the institution that bears his name will celebrate until April 24, 2020, and also coincides with the centenary of the birth of Ramírez Cerdá himself.
The meeting will offer an approach to the figure of José Ramírez Cerdá from his role as a public servant, initially as mayor of Arrecife (1955 - 1960) and later as president of the Cabildo of Lanzarote (1960 - 1974). Likewise, the speakers will address how the fruitful relationship between Manrique and Ramírez, while the latter was in charge of the presidency of the first island institution, was decisive in the process of transformation and modernization of Lanzarote.
"José Ramírez Cerdá and César Manrique: myth and reality" is the second table held within the cycle "César Manrique. Shared Memory" in which facets related to the artistic production, commitment, and personality of the artist are addressed from complementary perspectives.
The speakers
Luis Fajardo is a jurist, university professor, and politician. Since 2002 he has presided over the Advisory Council of the Canary Islands. He was elected deputy to Congress on five consecutive occasions (1977, 1979, 1982, 1986, and 1989). He was a member of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, where he chaired the Committee on the Environment and the assembly of Canarian parliamentarians who drafted the draft Statute of Autonomy for the islands.
Saúl García has a degree in Information Sciences from the Complutense University of Madrid. He has published and worked in various national, regional, and local media, both in print, radio, and television. He is the author of the blog "El Paseo" and a member of the Board of Directors of the Union of Communication Professionals of the Canary Islands.
Álvaro García González worked at the Cabildo de Lanzarote under the presidency of José Ramírez, specifically performing tasks in the areas of Intervention, Purchasing, and Treasury Administration, in the period between 1966 and 1972.
Antonio González Viéitez is a professor in the Faculty of Economics at the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. He was secretary of the Working Commission created by the Commonwealth of Cabildos to prepare the study on the Spanish Government's proposal for the elaboration of the REF in the summer of 1970, under the presidency of Pepín Ramírez. Likewise, he was appointed a member of the work team in charge of drafting the Lanzarote Island Planning Plan at the request of the Island Council (1971/73).
Enrique Pérez Parrilla has alternated his work in the classrooms of Lanzarote with his political career. He served as president of the Cabildo de Lanzarote for the PSOE on three occasions (1983-1987; 1994-1995; 1997-2003), and as mayor of Arrecife from 2007 to 2009. Under his mandate, the pioneering Lanzarote Island Plan was approved, promoting policies of containment of growth, integrated island territorial management and sustainability, and the first tourist moratorium in the Canary Islands.
