Estepona literary festival (flest)
Big names in culture meet at the Estepona Literary Festival (FLEST) to open the new Mirador del Carmen library
Andrés Trapiello, Marta Sanz, the musician Pablopablo, the filmmaker Oliver Laxe, the chef Paco Morales or the artists Coco Dávez and Brianda Fitzt James-Stuart are some of the names that participate in this edition, which will be held on November 23 and 24
The event will feature talks, workshops, readings, signings by authors and concerts
Estepona Town Hall is adding a new cultural event to its programme. This is the Estepona Literary Festival (FLEST), which will bring together great names in literature, music, journalism and gastronomy in a meeting that will take place on 23 and 24 November. This will be the first major event to be held at the new Library of Contemporary Cultures at Mirador del Carmen.
Twenty big names in literature, music, artistic creation and gastronomy will participate in a meeting in which different disciplines will join hands, creating synergies and exchanging experiences, making this first Literary Festival of Estepona a unique setting.
The programme will begin on Saturday 23 November with two artistic interventions. At 9.00 am, the artist Brianda Fitz James-Stuart will create a work on one of the library walls. From 12.00 pm, the workshop 'The Transforming Brushstroke' will take place, led by Coco Dávez, a multidisciplinary artist, coach and Spanish mentor known for her vibrant and colourful style, which has achieved international recognition in the world of art and culture. The activity will take place on the sixth floor of the library.
Throughout the day, between 1:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m., various talks and meetings will take place in the Mirador del Carmen Auditorium. The first of these will bring together the writers Andrés Trapiello and Marta Fernández, who will talk about 'Traces, verses and novels'. Andrés Trapiello is the author of renowned and award-winning novels, the latest of which is 'They ask me to return' (Destino, 2024). Marta Fernández is a journalist and has been a presenter of News on Telecinco and Noticias Cuatro. 'La mentira, historia de impostores y engañodos' is her latest book (HarperCollins, 2022).
Literature will continue to be the protagonist in the second meeting, at 6:00 p.m., which will bring together the writers Marta Sanz and Juan Marqués with a talk entitled 'Lo íntimo y los ediciones'. Marta Sanz has published novels, short stories, essays and poems. Her latest book is 'Los íntimos' (Anagrama, 2024). Juan Marqués is the author of a novel and five books of poems compiled in 'De qué vas a vivir' (Comares, 2024). He has curated exhibitions on Max Aub and Pilar de Valderrama for the Instituto Cervantes.
A meeting with David Uclés has been scheduled for Saturday afternoon. A graduate and Master in Translation and Interpretation, this man from Jaén is also a writer, musician and cartoonist. 'La peninsula de las casas vacías' (Siruela, 2024) is his latest novel and one of the great successes of Spanish literature this year. It will take place at 7:00 p.m.
Later, at 8:00 p.m., it will be the turn of the artist Mina Barrio, with 'The importance of showing oneself to others'. An audiovisual artist, content creator with thousands of followers on social networks and co-founder of Melon Blanc and the Melon School course platform, she has created more than 500 audiovisual works for brands and trained more than half a million students in her ten years of experience.
The day will be rounded off on the FLEST Stage at the Mirador, starting at 9:00 p.m., by the music of Pablopablo, one of the most relevant new voices in current Spanish-language music, who has just received two awards, along with his father Jorge Drexler, at the 2024 Latin Grammys. The singer and songwriter has two other awards won in 2022 with his first album.
Barcelona-based Sophie Lekker DJ and Grecotechno will also take to the stage with their original sound fusion between Gregorian chant and electronic music.
Second day
A workshop by Brianda Fitz-James Stuart, 'Introduction to decorative painting', has been scheduled for Sunday at 12 noon. It will take place on the sixth floor of the Mirador del Carmen Library and is open to all interested parties, with free registration. Brianda Fitz James-Stuart is an illustrator and designer. She studied Fashion Design at the European Institute of Design and completed her training at The Art Student League of New York. She has collaborated with brands such as Gucci, Suárez, Swatch and Zara.
Once again on Sunday, the Mirador auditorium will be the scene of several talks and meetings between 12:00 and 20:00. The first of these will bring together the writers Juan Tallón and Lucía Taboada, who will talk about 'Football, Novels, and Other Anguish'. Juan Tallón is a regular contributor to the media. His latest novel is 'The Best in the World' (Anagrama). Lucía Taboada is a journalist. She currently presents the sports edition of Telecinco's midday news, collaborates with other media and directs and presents the literary podcast ''Nota al Pie'' (Vanity Fair). She has written the book 'Como siempre, lo de siempre' (Libros del KO), which was awarded the Panenka Prize for best book of the year 2019.
Gastronomy also has its place in this cultural festival. Chef Paco Morales, one of the most prominent figures in Spanish gastronomy, with three Michelin stars and awarded The Best Chef Award 2024, will chat, starting at 1:00 p.m., with the writer, audiovisual producer and screenwriter, Jacobo Bergareche. The presentation is entitled 'Eating to tell the tale: A perfect day with a three Michelin star restaurant'.
Multidisciplinary artist Coco Dávez and Guille Galván, guitarist of 'Vetusta Morla', will open the evening at 6:00 p.m. with 'Desconocernos, artistas que escribirn, poetas que cantan'. Galván has been nominated for the Latin Grammy in the category of Best Alternative Author, and has composed the soundtracks for films such as 'La Hija' and 'El amor de Andrea' or 'La Virgen Roja'.
At 7:00 p.m., Ricardo Lezón and María Eloy García will discuss the topic 'Spoken Word'. María Eloy-García has published several books translated into numerous languages. She stands out for her interesting staging, with a particular voice and irony. In this meeting she will be accompanied by Ricardo Lezón, leader of the group 'McEnroe' and author of the autobiography 'Lento y salvaje'.
Ramón Andrés and Oliver Laxe will join forces at 8:00 p.m. for the talk 'Despacio el mundo'. Ramón Andrés has written numerous books and has received awards such as the Ciutat de Barcelona Prize and the National Poetry Critics' Prize. For his part, Oliver Laxe is the only filmmaker in the history of Spanish cinema to have been awarded for his first three films at the Cannes Film Festival. With the feature film Mimosas (2016) he won the special jury prize at the Seville European Film Festival. His latest film 'O que arde' received two Goya awards.
Rosario La Tremendita's music will arrive on the FLEST stage at 9:00 p.m. Considered the protagonist of the last great revolution in cante jondo, she is a composer, producer, lyricist and multi-instrumentalist. With two nominations for the Latin Grammy Awards for 'Best Flamenco Album' (2015 and 2018), and the MIN Independent Music Award for her album Tremenda, the artist will close the day and this edition of the Estepona Literary Festival with which the city's new Library of Contemporary Cultures will be valued.
Admission to the activities of this festival is free, upon prior collection of the invitation at the counter of the hall on the days of the event. To attend the workshops, prior registration is required at flest@estepona.es (limited places), with full name and ID.
All information about the festival is available at: www.estepona.es