5.11.2019
National Library of Spain, Madrid
The National Library of Spain pays tribute, through the exhibition "The Republican Exile of 1939, Eighty Years Later", to the memory of about half a million Spaniards who were forced into exile after the fall of Barcelona.
The exhibition reconstructs the cultural activity of exiled intellectuals through a hundred letters, books and photographs that belong, for the most part, to the funds of the National Library.
Curated by Manuel Aznar and José Ramón López, one of the outstanding pieces is the notebook known as "Manuscrito Penagos", by Rafael Alberti, written during his stay in Paris, between February 1939 and March 1940.
Since the condition of exiles meant a notable increase of the epistolary genre, the letters have a prominent role. Thus, the correspondence between Juan Ramón Jiménez, Juan José Domenchina, Pedro Salinas, Rafael Alberti, María Teresa León, Rosa Chacel or Jorge Guillén is one of the most unique legacies.
The section "Ships to America" recovers the odyssey of those who left for Latin America and reconstructs the vital expertise of the ship "Winnipeg", promoted by Pablo Neruda, and which brought to Chile more than 2,200 exiles who were able to restart their lives there. Likewise, the exhibition reflects the noted role of Mexico as a host country based on the initiative of President Lázaro Cárdenas.
In exile, in Paris, on March 13, 1939, the Spanish Cultural Board was created, heir to the former Alliance of Intellectuals for the Defense of Culture, presided over at its origin by José Bergamín. Among his first editorial initiatives was "Letters to an emigrated Spaniard", by Paulino Masip and the magazine "España peregrina".
The exhibition, which is part of a wide program of activities that includes round tables, is in collaboration with the Interministerial Commission of the 80th anniversary of the Republican exile, and can be seen until February 2, 2020.
