“There is no other space in the world where passion, art, image and creativity come together as in Veintinueve Trece, which this year focuses on tenderness and care.” The Canarian artist Teresa Correa took over from Javier Reyes and Santiago Alemán, whose careers were recognized in previous editions.
The photography and visual arts festival Veintinueve Trece opened on Monday night at El Almacén, focusing on tenderness as a counter-trend, as resistance against a polarized world where violence and brutality stand as pillars of our relationships.
Veintinueve Trece is the only photography and visual arts meeting in the Canary Islands of these characteristics and one of the five with the greatest projection at the national level, which in its IX edition once again sells out all its places in the activities aimed at professionals in the sector.
For six days, until Saturday, November 16, workshops, conferences, screenings and activities open to the general public will be held, which is increasingly interested in this type of quality content and that invites reflection.
The director of the meeting, Nico Melián, during the presentation, highlighted "the importance of having spaces for thought and reflection to delve into the use of images and their meaning, as well as the value that Tenderness takes on as a radical alternative, a powerful force that dares to care for us, connect us and recognize us as interdependent beings."
Recognition of artists from the Canary Islands
Teresa Correa is a Canarian artist who, visibly excited, accepted the recognition of her work and highlighted the difficulty of having a career in the art world as a woman, mother and photographer. A work in which the constant support of her life partner has been essential, to whom she dedicated the award. She also had words of recognition for her professional colleagues, whom she remembered in her speech.
During the presentation, an audiovisual piece by filmmaker Miguel G. Morales was shown about the NGO ProemAid, which teaches people who have arrived in canoes to the islands and have had traumatic experiences in the water how to swim. “The stories that remain hidden serve to prop up power,” he said during his presentation.
Another of the projects presented at this opening was the photo-book La polaroid de Mario, by Rubén Plasencia. It is an intimate work that speaks about family, legacy and care. And, as it was said paraphrasing Oscar Wilde: “in art, as in love, tenderness is what gives strength.”
To close a night full of images and messages, a surprise piece was projected that immerses in uncertainty to provoke reflection from the attendees. It is a sound piece, without images, by the musicologist Isaac Álamo with sound by David Hernández and performed by the violinist Iya Zhmaeva Nikolaeva.
The objective of this video is to raise a question about the use and consumption we make of images. One more year, the association Veintinueve Trece focuses its attention on the responsible creation and conscious consumption of images.
The inauguration was held in the Buñuel cinema of El Almacén with a room full of fans and institutional personalities from the Cabildo, the Arrecife City Council, Art, Culture and Tourism Centers and Tourism Lanzarote, among others.
The photography and visual arts meeting
In this ninth edition, it is worth highlighting the participation of the photographer Laura Pannack, the photojournalist Samuel Aranda, Teresa Medina, Florence Goupil, León Romero, Rafa Badia, Félix Bollaín, Mar Romera, Daniel L. Fleitas and Patricia Agüero and Óscar Horta, among others. The program for this edition is now available on the festival website.
