A Bit of Basque Miscellany
Today, I’m sharing a number of interesting items that have been sent to me over the last… well, I don’t dare say, as some of these have been sitting in my inbox for far too long. I hope you enjoy these!
Category Archives: Art
Basque Fact of the Week: Maialen Lujanbio, Bertsolari Champion
Bertsolaritza is the art of Basque improvisational poetry. Every four years, the best bertsolaris come together to crown a champion. (It has been five years since the last competition because of, you know, COVID.) The latest edition of the championship, called the Bertsolari Txapelketa Nagusia, just wrapped up, with the final taking place on December […]
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Reasons, a Poem by Harkaitz Cano, Translated by Elizabeth Macklin
The New Yorker recently published the poem Reasons, by Basque poet Harkaitz Cano. Actually, they published the translation by Elizabeth Macklin, but on their site you can also find an audio clip of both reading the poem. I’m copying the translated version below. I admit, I’m not much of a poetry reader, not really having […]
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Artist Bertrand Linne
I just discovered Bertrand Linne and his art. He’s from Hendaia. His art is very geometrical. It’s just great, capturing the essence of his subjects with lines and a few colors. Every image looks like a stained glass window. Ikaragarria da!
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Basque Fact of the Week: Jean Paul “Pablo” Tillac, Illustrator of the Basques
The last one hundred years has seen more change than any other time in our history. The way that place such as the Basque Country are now would be shocking to anyone born one hundred years ago, and the reverse might be true as well. So much has changed. Having a looking glass into the […]
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Basque Fact of the Week: Hilarriak, the Dead-Stones of the Basque Country
During my first visit to the Basque Country, my cousin took me to Elorrio, not far from his hometown of Durango in Bizkaia. He took me and a friend to Argiñeta, which was simply amazing. They’ve collected a number of hilarriak, or funeral steles, there. These are large stone grave markers that are carved with […]
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Basque Fact of the Week: Agustín Ibarrola, Painter of Forests
Not far from Gernika, in the forests of the small village of Kortezubi, resides one of the most unusual art displays one can imagine. The trees are painted with splashes of color and geometrical forms that, individually, have no rhyme or reason, but together, when viewed from the right spot, form figures and shapes that […]
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Basque Fact of the Week: Goya’s Basque Connection
Francisco de Goya y Lucientes is one of the most recognized and celebrated painters in the world. A romanticist, he is considered to be one of the greatest portraitists of his time. His paintings often depicted the reality and brutality that surrounded him, a darkness in his style that became particularly prevalent after a sickness […]
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Basque Fact of the Week: Cristina Iglesias and Her Newest Creation, Hondalea
Donostia, the capital of Gipuzkoa, is a city filled with a myriad of things to see and do. From the Parte Vieja, where one can wander all night sampling pintxos, to the wonderful beaches, to the history of the San Telmo museum, there is so much to do. And, thanks to Cristina Iglesias, a sculptor […]
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Basque Fact of the Week: Caves and Caverns of the Basque Country
We often associate prehistory with caves, with literal cavemen and cavewomen who sought shelter from the elements and predators within the safety of chasms and grottos. The Basque Country, a place where mountains meet the sea, is full of caves, caverns, and subterranean tunnels. These natural shelters have played a huge role in the history, […]
