Veintinueve Trece announced this Friday morning the start of the tenth edition of the Lanzarote Photography and Visual Arts Encounter, an initiative that proposes to analyze and reflect on the collective as a counter-trend to contemporary individualism, according to the director of the organizing association.
A program from November 10 to 15
This year's program focuses its activities between November 10 and 15 and will feature national and international participants, who will give specialized workshops and conferences. In addition, there will be events open to the public, such as the talk on Social Architecture and Citizen Cooperation, with Itziar González Virós, on the importance of the relational environment in our neighborhoods, cultural landscapes and territories and how to lead their transformation from the citizenry.
As part of the usual collaboration with Tenique Cultural, the collective that organizes La Muestra de Cine, the film Of Gods and Men will be screened, followed by a discussion with the philosopher and essayist Santiago Alba Rico, who will reflect on collective human structures.
The most playful part of the Encounter is held on Saturday, November 15, in the Plaza de El Almacén, from ten in the morning until nine at night. The Photography Festival is designed for the whole family with proposals for children and adults. Children's workshops, instant photography, a giant camera, art market, guided tours, talks, discussion panels, and a photobook meeting are some of the planned activities.
Veintinueve Trece also has three exhibitions: Photojournalism: A Collective Vision of Lanzarote at the Casa Amarilla; another on The Street, a Space of Resistance, in the Plaza de El Almacén; and the recently inaugurated Only a Name (I'm Underneath), by photographer Sheila R. Melhem at the Socio-cultural Center of La Vega.
All information about the 10th Visual Arts Meeting of Lanzarote, Veintinueve Trece, is available on social media and on the festival's official website.
About Veintinueve Trece
Veintinueve Trece is a non-profit cultural association linked to the world of photography and audiovisuals. Its name refers to the geographical coordinates of Lanzarote (29º N, 13º W), with the aim of giving visibility to the culture of Lanzarote in the Canary Islands and the rest of the country.
Since 2016, the event has grown in quality and number of participants, establishing itself as a regional benchmark for visual culture. The project promotes critical thinking, training, and citizen participation through photography and visual arts.
The Photography and Visual Arts Encounter is organized by the Veintinueve Trece Cultural Association and sponsored by the Cabildo de Lanzarote, the Ministry of Culture of Spain, the Culture Area of the Arrecife City Council, and SPEL Turismo Lanzarote.
Citizen support
Ten years creating an audiovisual culture in constant growth and always with an objective "to work for and for Lanzarote" added Melián, who thanked the support of institutions such as the Cabildo de Lanzarote, which through its Culture Area, supports this initiative. In this sense, its councillor, Jesús Machín, highlighted that this tenth edition consolidates Veintinueve Trece as a platform for reflection that generates critical thinking and dialogue from the image.
"The gathering has become a point of reference for sharing perspectives and strengthening the island's cultural scene," he said. Machín also emphasized "the value of bringing together professionals from different disciplines to address how the collective manifests itself in our way of living, remembering, and relating to the territory," and noted that "culture is creation, but also participation and encounter. Lanzarote has much to contribute to that debate."
For his part, the Deputy Mayor of Arrecife, Echedey Eugenio, pointed out that "we are very proud to collaborate once again with Veintinueve Trece, a gathering that has become one of the great cultural events in the Canary Islands and that places our city as a space for reflection and creation around the contemporary image." Eugenio also highlighted that "Veintinueve Trece is a gathering that invites us to think, to look at our territory from new perspectives, and to understand culture as a tool for thinking and building."
Finally, the head of the Lanzarote Film Commission of SPEL-Turismo Lanzarote, Esther García, added that the audiovisual sector is strategic for the island and is part of the roadmap to promote cultural and creative industries such as Veintinueve Trece, "which contributes to inspiring other creators and is a scenario to attract talent."
