Agulha Revista de Cultura arises in late 1999. Internet was still a motive for amazement and disbelief. The magazine’s first issues circulated thanks to the caress of Rodrigo de Souza Leão, who generously pus a host at my disposal. The magazine has a makeshift design, I had to learn in a few days how to handle the techniques demanded by this new world. And there was a yet bigger defiance: how to make fruit this adventure in terms of readers. Who would be the virtual reader we had to find.
Not many months later I met Francisco Soares Feitosa, even more precursory than I, who had created, in 1996, the Jornal de Poesia, this indeed, the first data bank with virtual circulation dedicated to poetry in Portuguese language. Thanks to JP the Internet learned reading poetry. The job I was developing, out of the virtual world, diffusion of literature in Spanish language, coincided with the pioneer sense than proposed by JP. We dealt with gathering both projects in a same host, which we use until today.
The next step was taken by the casual recovery of friendship, started in 1983 and interrupted a few years later, with Claudio Willer. Our affinity to the forefront, especially surrealism, was a decisive point for Willer to start integrating the Agulha Revista de Cultura team, dividing with me its direction. In the next year, 2001, I deal with creating the Banda Hispânica, which was an equivalent, in Spanish language, to what was being done by JP in Portuguese language. Considering that Agulha Revista de Cultura met the diffusion of critical texts about art and culture anywhere in the world, since published in Portuguese and/or Spanish, we had thus established a cosmopolitan cultural ambience which was absolutely unusual in terms of Internet.
However, the biggest defiance remained: that of the circulation of all this daring. The Internet hadn’t yet found a bridge to the printed world; both Medias still now have their unspoken attrition points. We then consolidated a data bank – JP, Banda Hispânica and Agulha Revista de Cultura –, good articulations with cooperators, parallel projects with virtual editors that started arising in other countries, such as Mexico, Costa Rica, Portugal… These are valuable actions which were enriched by a kind of treasure hunt: the creation of a collection of electronic addresses. Common efforts lead us to count, in 2004, over de 100 thousand e-mails registered.
It was when Agulha Revista de Cultura decided to broaden its work ambience and we created a section dedicated to the diffusion of culture magazines, printed and virtual. It was also a manner to propose the integration between these two worlds. Printed magazines, in some countries, used to have the presence, in each issue, of a sole plastic artist illustrating the whole edition. We had adopted this systematic since the first issue of Agulha Revista de Cultura. Therefore, in 2007, we were awarded the Antônio Bento Prize, by ABCA – Brazilian Association of Arts Critics, for merit in diffusion of plastic arts in the country. In the same year I was invited by The Government of The State of Ceará to be the curator of Ceará International Book Biennial.
Although the Biennial had taken place in 2008, a year before we promoted, in Fortaleza, a first meeting of cultural promoters from Iberian America, whose intention was defining agenda of an event existing since 14 years ago. Without public wear, although acceptable before the bolding, the Biennial bid was attracting attention to an absolutely typical cultural community involving Portuguese and Spanish languages. In this sense it was absolutely atypical and I regret that even today, institutionally, the opportunity of a quality leap in our so precarious relationship with the continent we are part of hasn’t been noticed. Within the ambience created, in 2009 we gathered, in Fortaleza, an expressive representation of Fundación Casa de las Américas directory, from Cuba, to celebrate its 50th anniversary.
When, in 2009, we edited Agulha Revista de Cultura’s # 70, we completed an expressive phase, which mixes pioneering, bold, prize award, international recognizing and partnership. The Internet was quelled. It was necessary to redesign the spirit with which we started this adventure. In a first plane, I turned myself to a greater articulation with Jornal de Poesia. Starting from what we had done so far we designed two editorial projects, which we started naming Projeto Editorial Banda Hispânica and Projeto Editorial Banda Lusófona. Considering that JP had, in Portuguese language ambience, a news magazine which was its own site, I decided to create an equivalent magazine for Spanish language, Agulha Hispânica.
In a certain way, we are in debt with our readers, because it wasn’t yet possible to standardize, as we intend, the Projeto Editorial Banda Hispânica’s data bank, within the new design created since 2010. We pursued partnership agreements with some countries, and little by little we are updating this collection. At the same time, I decided to retake Agulha Revista de Cultura’s cosmopolitan spirit. This idea is fed by the encounter with new editorial accomplices. In the same spirit, we created Colección de Arena, an e-book series.
In 2011 I decided Agulha Hispânica would have a good cycle closed in 12 issues and two years in activity. In great part the material destined to it will be absorbed by Projeto Editorial Banda Hispânica, specially the one for poetry. Starting from January, 2012, the next phase of Agulha Revista de Cultura will arise, of which this issue number 00 is the starting mark. With the same editorial principle and coverage sense.
When I started Agulha Revista de Cultura, in turn the unfolding of other printed editorial experiences, I just thought about the critical gap, about the lack of reflection existing relative to what we are, to what we do. Reviews in general are superficial and convenient, a way for spectacle to feed itself, never to reflect on causes and effects. The magazine exists for this purpose: to put the finger in the wound, when there is a wound, when there is a consistent finger.
However the spectacle exists and today it was converted in a way of reserve violation, the spectacle is what defines the essence of human relationship, it no longer matters if the ambience is that of art, of science, of politics, of religion. Fourth power is now fifth. Fifth is far from being hell. If I’m asked what I’m still doing here, editing a culture magazine, I say the beer is cool enough. I like to do what I do. There’s no remedy for human species. But the beer is cool enough. And thanks to one of these beers I met Márcio Simões. Luckily, he’s not the disciple kind, which makes him perfect to persist with me against the world. With him, we are bound to Agulha Revista de Cultura’s phase II.
This issue we now publish has been scheduled for months. Meeting Márcio Simões was decisive to redefine the magazines’ cosmopolitan ambience, its bid in new connections with many countries, the idea of creating a group of translators which may help us to circulate in various languages. What we announce here is a return. A return which is also a renewal of its principles. Francisco Soares Feitosa continues with us as a masterful pilot, orchestra regent, friend in every hour, irreplaceable inspirational.We resume within Jornal de Poesia’s 15-year existence. What we are still keeps having the kind stamp of this starting point in the Internet: Francisco Soares Feitosa’s JP.
Beside JP, the reader will find in our website four other links suggested for permanent visits: ViaPolítica, Edições Nephelibata, Instituto Anima de Sophia and La Cabra Ediciones. They represent, in distinct and complementary ambiences, a kind of coincident bid, of sincere and healthy complicity. In the first two cases, respectively, it will be possible to access the Sala de Retratos and the collection O Começo da Busca, two parallel projects we accomplish jointly. The third name refers to a physical space in São Paulo which will always welcome Agulha Revista de Cultura’s editors for the presentation of any of our projects. Last, the Mexican editor will be responsible, from January 2012 on, for publishing a set of four volumes which gather the best that can be found in the 70 issues that set the first phase of our editorial adventure.
One can’t say we’re back, because, in fact, we never absented. During these 12 years of intense virtual activity, what is worth saying is that the principle is the same, renewed, but conscious of its role, as evoking, defying, articulator, propitiator of aspects linked to art and to culture, to thinking and to human existence, which inform us, when less, which incite us, stimulate, defy to seek in the most intimate of us all a better man. If we don’t find this species in our ulterior swamp, then art isn’t worthwhile. Nothing’s worthwhile. But something’s always worthwhile, no matter the soul’s size. | Abraxas
[September, 2011] Translated by Luiz Leitão
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