Pilar del Río receives Spanish-Portuguese Art and Culture Prize 2016

2017.5.26

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It was unanimously decided to give the award to Pilar del Río for her work "as founder and chair of the Saramago Foundation, dedicated to the defence of human rights, the promotion of Portuguese literature and the exchange of Portuguese, Spanish and Latin American culture". The panel's decision was also based on its recognition of the "extensive intellectual work as a journalist, translator and promoter of Portuguese-Spanish culture. She and the foundation she heads up both embody the spirit and values of Portuguese-Spanish fraternity".

Presentation of this award, which the two countries hand out every two years, coincides on Friday with the inauguration of the Madrid Book Fair, at which Portugal is a guest country this year.

The Spanish-Portuguese Art and Culture Prize was created in 2006. It is awarded biannually to reward the work of a creator in the field of art and culture and to increase cultural communication and cooperation between Spain and Portugal. Accompanied by €75,000, the prize recognises significant contributions to the strengthening of ties between the two countries and greater mutual knowledge of creation in all its forms.

Biography

Pilar del Río Sánchez (Castril, Granada, 1950) is a journalist and translator. She began her professional career with the La Voz del Guadalquivir radio station in Seville and the Triunfo magazine. She has also worked for Televisión Española de Andalucía and collaborated with other media channels, such as Canal Sur and Cadena Ser.

She married José Saramago in 1988, at which time she became the lead translator for works by the Portuguese author into Spanish. She worked with various Spanish publishing houses, including Aguilar and Alfaguara.

Following the death of the author in 2010, Pilar del Río set up the José Saramago Foundation in Lisbon, where she has lived since, while taking Portuguese nationality. The documentary entitled José y Pilar, directed by Miguel Gonçalves Mendes and about the life of the author and his wife, was released in that year.

The José Saramago Foundation is aimed at defending human rights and preparing the urgent Universal Declaration of Human Duties and Responsibilities. In terms of cultural issues, the foundation promotes the encouragement of reading, knowledge of Portuguese literature and exchange with other cultures.

The panel

The recipients of this prize are decided upon by a panel of six (three Spanish and three Portuguese) chosen from among figures of recognised cultural merit.

This year, the Portuguese members of the panel were: Joao Fernandes, Deputy Director of the Reina Sofía National Museum and Art Centre; Nuno Júdice, author and poet; and J. Bragança de Miranda, Communication Science Professor at Universidad Nova de Lisboa. The Spanish members of the panel were: Ana Santos Aramburo, Director of the National Library of Spain; Juan Cruz, journalist and author; and José Pascual Marco Martínez, Director-General for Cultural Industries and Books.

List of laureates

2006 - Jose Bento (poet and translator), Portuguese
2008 - Perfecto Cuadrado (professor and author), Spanish
2010 - Álvaro Siza Vieira (architect), Portuguese
2012 - Carlos Saura (film-maker), Spanish
2014 - Lidia Jorge (author), Portuguese
2016 - Pilar del Río (author), Spanish