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New York, NY.  The New York University will be the site this afternoon of the inauguration of the exhibit entitled, “The Bombing of Guernika. The Exhibit” that contains information and images of the bombing.  Today’s inauguration includes a performance by soprano Amaya Arberas from Donostia and will remain open until December 17.  

The Basque Cultural Exchange began last Monday October 1, with the inauguration of the second edition of the Bernardo Atxaga Chair (CUNY) and a subsequent panel discussion entitled, “Gernika revisited” attended by Professor Joan Ramon Resina from Stanford University  where he is a professor in the department of Iberian and Latin American Cultures, and Joseba Zulaika co-director of the Center for Basque Studies at the University of Nevada, Reno.  The panel was moderated by Marijo Olaziregi, director of Promotion and Diffusion of the Basque Language at the Etxepare Basque Institute.

Reflecting on Gernika

“The goal of the roundtable entitled “Gernika Revisited,” is as its name indicates, to reflect on the bombing of the city of Gernika and what it signifies for us today,” Marijose Olaziregi explained.  “Gernika has a special importance in terms of the disproportionate attack, the means employed, the desired goal, and the distortion of what happened,” said invited Professor Joan Ramon Resina.

‘Gernika Revisited” launched the cultural events of “Basque Cultural Exchange in New York,” a program that provided attendees to get to know four themes better through this cultural window, including Basque film, the 75 anniversary of the Bombing of Gernika, the icon of Gernika becoming one of today’s Basque icons and a trip through the history of Basque music.

Cultural events took place in four different locales: the City University of New York (CUNY) – where the Bernardo Atxaga Chair resides, now in its second year--, the New York University (NYU) where the King Juan Carlos Center (KJCC) is located, the Anthology Film Archives and the Cervantes Institute of New York.

Basque Film

After the inauguration of the second edition of the Bernardo Atxaga Chair at CUNY a program on the history of the Basque Country, specifically that of Gernika and the Basque Country during the civil war took place all week long.  These events will include screenings of various films pertaining to the theme, thanks to current incumbent Joxean Fernandez, director of the Basque Filmoteca, and expert on Contemporary History and Film History and a professor at the University of Nantes.

His work and the collaboration with the Basque Filmoteca have been fundamental for the organization of a cycle on the Civil War in the Basque Country in the cult New York  Anthology Film Archives.  Titles that can be seen include: The Tree of Guernica (Fernando Arrabal, 1975), Guernica (Robert Hessens & Alain Resnais, 1950), Good News (Helena Tabernna, 2008), Lauaxeta (J.A. Zorrilla, 1987), The Children of Russia (Jaime Camino, 2001), Cows (Julio Medem, 1992).  The film by Helena Taberna will also include a special presentation by Joxean Fernandez and its producer Iker Ganuza.

Exhibit until December

Basque film will also be featured at the Cervantes Institute of New York with a special screening dedicated to filmmaker Imanol Uribe.  His last film will be shown Honey from Oranges (2011) as well as the documentary Haika Mutil (1997), in which Uribe takes a look at Mikel Laboa, scripted by Bernardo Atxaga and javier Aguirresarobe.  The screening will also be attended by Imanol Uribe himself, who will participate in a discussion following the shown along with CUNY professor and Basque film expert Paul Julian Smith.

The cycle at the Anthology Film Archives, along with a kick-off roundtable on Monday at NYU, and the exhibit “The Bombing of Gernika, The Exhibit” will be inaugurated this afternoon with a recital by Amaya Arberas soprano from Donostia, are three offerings by “Basque Cultural Exchange,” in the days surrounding the 75 anniversary of the Bombing of Gernika.

From Gernika to today’s icons

For its part, the internationalization of the cultural and business world and the Basque icons of the future will be themes focused on by the roundtable “Basque Icons in the World,” that will take place on Thursday October 11 at the Cervantes Institute.

Representatives from three different modes of the internationalization of Basque culture and business will participate: Mike Urmeneta, creator and creative director of Kukuxumusu, Jose Luis Rebordinos, director of San Sebastian’s International Film Festival, and Mikel Lezamiz, director of the Cooperative Diffusion of the Mondragon Corporation. Moderator of the event will be writer and journalist Javier Rioyo, director of New York’s Cervantes Institute.

Closing ceremony and Basque Musical Review

Finally, the famous song Baga biga higa by Mikel Laboa will serve and the title of a multimedia concert created by musicians Mikel Markez and Eñaut Elorrieta that will close the conference. The project which is geared towards cultural transmission and the diffusion of the travels and referents of Basque music, provides a journey through the history of Basque song.  This will take place on October 13 at New York’s Cervantes Institute.

The Etxepare Basque Institute has counted on the Support of the following institutions for the organization of these activities: the Basque Filmoteca, the Delegation of Euskadi in New York, CUNY, NYU, the Cervantes Institute in New York, Anthology Film Archives, Spain Culture New York, ICAA, Euskadi 2012, and the Basque Government.

-Complete event program here

-Etxepare Basque Institute Website: www.etxepareinstitutua.com