8th Dominican Book Fair in New York Concludes Successfully

8th Dominican Book Fair in New York Concludes Successfully
New York, October 1, 2014

Thousands of lovers of books and culture who packed the 8th Dominican Book Fair in New York, which took place on September 26, 27 and 28 at the Gregorio Luperón High School, once more turned the Upper Manhattan in the cultural capital of the Dominican Republic.

The majority of spaces where the events were held, including book presentations, theater plays, lectures, panels and readings of poetry and stories, were filled with people of different ages. Among the most visited was the Pavilion of the Dominican Identity, coordinated by Darío Tejeda, where five commemorations of Dominican history and identity took place, including the 170th anniversary of the Dominican national independence (1844-2014), the 175th anniversary of the birth of General Gregorio Luperón, hero of the Restoration of the Dominican Republic, and the 160th anniversary of the public introduction of Merengue in the Dominican Republic (1854-2014).

Another pavilion that had record attendance this year was the Film Pavilion, directed by Actress Mariluz Acosta, where the first Festival of Short Films ‘Light and Movement’ took place, and which paid tribute to Actor Juan Fernández, to whom the pavilion was dedicated.

Other popular pavilions were the Children’s Pavilion, coordinated by writer Elizabeth Balaguer, where fun activities for children took place, such as the presentation of Pocoyo, a character of the HITN children’s program; the Historical Memory Pavilion, coordinated by Activist Roberto Castillo, where panels and lectures on Dominican history were held; and, the Expression and Youth Pavilion, directed by Actress Angie Regina, where workshops, musical performances, lectures and discussions were held.

The Dominican Commissioner of Culture, Mr. Carlos Sánchez, thanked the participating writers and exhibitors, as well as the public, for the great reception they had given to the event, “and most especially to Teacher and Writer Juan Villar, the main sponsor of the fair, for having opened the doors of the Gregorio Luperón High School, which was key to the success of this celebration of culture.”

The opening ceremony was held at the United Palace Theatre in Manhattan, it paid tribute to Dominican folklore, and was attended by a group of students from the Gregorio Luperón High School. There were performance by the Queen of Merengue, Milly Quezada, and artists Nipo, Jankarlos, Joan, Tato Torres, Brenda Lidia and Top Class.

On behalf of the Minister of Culture, José Antonio Rodríguez, the Deputy Minister for Cultural Identity and Citizenship, Ediltrudis Pichardo (Edilí), highlighted the importance of the fair for the Dominican community residing abroad. Commissioner Sánchez spoke of the progress in the field of culture that the organizers of the event have achieved, and mentioned the new cultural projects that the Commissioner’s office will be launching, including the celebration of the First Poetry Festival and the First Biennial of Visual Arts.

The events that took place included the donation of books to the Hostos Community College, under the coordination of the Joaquín Balaguer Foundation, and the donation of UASD books to the Gregorio Luperón High School.

The activity included the presentation of the following works: Trueno robado (Haikus y otras Japonerías) and El Festín: obra completa, by Alexis Gómez Rosa; and several books winners of the National Prize of Literature, Diógenes Céspedes, which included El Sujeto Dominicano and Ponencias del Coloquio de Henri Meschonnic; Tempestad del Silencio, by Matthew Morrison, who is also a winner of the National Prize of Literature; the anthology De quites y querencias, by Rei Berroa; Práctica de sueños, by Basilio Belliard; and Las huellas literarias de Juan Bosch, by Nestor Medrano, under the coordination of the Bosch Foundation.

Also, the presentation of works that have been jointly edited by the Commissioner of Culture and the UASD: Cuando los Jacksons me cayeron encima, by Carmen Mata; Los Cuentos de Mount Hope, by Tomás Modesto Galán; and Ya no estaban las palomas, by Eduardo Lantigua.

And the release of the books that won the Letras de Ultramar Award 2013, headed by Commissioner Carlos Sánchez and the Director of the National Publishing House, poet León Félix Batista: Sapito Azul y el misterio sonoro, by César Sánchez Beras; Ascenso y Caída de Andresito Reyna, by Frank Disla; and, Sin haitianidad no hay dominicanidad, by Diógenes Abreu.

Several roundtables took place, such as: “The UASD, 476 years of History and Contributions to National Development”, with Dr. Clara Benedicto; “Rei Berroa and Margaret Randall: duel between poets”; and “Organization of Artisans as a Path for Development”, with Miguel Pimentel, Francisco José Cedeño, Manuel de la Cruz, Mercedes Polanco and Fausto Araújo.

The Julia de Burgos stamp was unveiled at a ceremony led by Dr. Modesto Guzmán, Director General of the Instituto Postal Dominicano (Inposdom) and writer Chiqui Vicioso, a researcher of the Puerto Rican poet.

Also, the following lectures were organized: “Contribution of women to the socio-political struggle of the Dominican people”, with Chiqui Vicioso; “Professor Juan Bosch’s humanism and the coup d’état of September 25th, 1963”, with Odalis Pérez; “Origin and evolution of intellectual property in the Dominican Republic”, by Víctor Eddy Mateo Vázquez; “Cultural management in the mud”, with Genaro Pérez; “Don Manuel del Cabral and his legacy in the national culture”, with Alejandro Cabral; “The alleged agraphia of Juan Francisco Santamaría“, with Ángel Garrido; “To understand the Dominican National Anthem”, with Miguel De Camps; “Times of whirlwinds in Barahona 1970”, with Luis Terrero Melo. And, “Sonia Silvestre: 40 years of singing for a better world”, with Maribell Contreras.

In addition, readings of poetry and/or narrative texts were conducted: “Tres tristes tigres, with Rei Berroa, César Sánchez Beras and Diógenes Abreu”.

The following activities also took place: the theater play “Shades of gray”, with Félix Otero and Henry Ovalle; the film Gallo, by Juan Fernández, to whom the Theater Pavilion was dedicated; the video documentary Los Guloyas (Popular Dancing Theater from San Pedro de Macorís) and the Congos of Espíritu Santo de Villa Mella, with Darío Tejeda.

Workshops were also organized, including: “Creating a Character Part I and II”, by Giovanny Cruz; and “Cinematography Part I and II”, by Luis Cabrera; “Creative Recycling”, with Bertha Santana and coordinated by FUNGLODE; and, Live Poetry, by Valentin Amaro.

In addition, the panels: “7 days with the people and the New Dominican Song. Convite Group and Luis Días”, with Iván Domínguez, Nerys Olivares, Ping Bencosme, and Rafael Fland. And, “Poetic art, press and us”, with José Acosta, Kianny Antigua, Osiris Mosquea, Yrene Santos, and Carlos Aguasaco.

Thousands of dollars in book bonuses were distributed at the fair, free of charge, to Dominican students attending public schools, so that they could buy books by Dominicans authors at the event. This activity was sponsored by the National Council for Dominican Communities Abroad (CONDEX), the Dominican Overseas Representative, Rubén Luna, and Dr. Juan Tapia.

This year, the fair was dedicated to Dominican poet and essayist Rei Berroa, for his outstanding career as a writer and cultural promoter, and for his contributions to Dominican literature through his essays and work of poetry.

In addition, the 8th Dominican Book Fair was dedicated to Ángel Garrido and Luis Terrero Melo, Dominican writers living in the metropolitan area of Washington, D.C., and a special tribute was paid to the writers of the Puerto Rican diaspora in the United States.

With the slogan “The book is the best of friends”, the fair, which is visited every year by thousands of people, offers the Spanish-speaking communities in the US the opportunity to come into contact with the large, varied and rich Dominican literature.

During the closing ceremony, which was held in the Hall of Events, Andrés Francisco Requeña, from the Commissioner’s office, announced the winners of 4th Youth Award of the Dominican Book Fair, under the coordination of writer Rubén Sánchez Feliz.

In the poetry category, the first place went the young Dominican Eroina Santiago, with the poem “El cuerpo no aguanta más”, and in the category short story, young Ecuadorian María Guanga won first place with the story “Dos meses y un sueño”.