Sweden will expand its relationship with Colombia to the cultural field at the Book Fair
Bogotá, Aug 4 (EFE) .- Sweden, guest of honor at the XXXIII International Book Fair of Bogotá (Filbo) that begins next Friday, will seek to strengthen its centennial relationship with Colombia through culture, the ambassador of that country, Helena Storm.
"Filbo is a new face in this tree of relations between the two countries," said the ambassador at the presentation of the Book Fair, which will be held from August 6 to 22 and will be digital due to the restrictions to which forces the covid-19 pandemic.
The diplomat recalled that the two countries have a friendly relationship that began 147 years ago and that the Scandinavian country has supported Colombia in various initiatives, including the search for peace and sustainability, and announced that it is time to give the leap into culture.
"Today the door opens to a universe of content with more than 20 guests; we will talk about culture, literature, politics, sustainability," added Storm about the Swedish participation in the fair.
Among the Swedish guests will be Anna Bagstam, who made her literary debut in 2017 with the book "Stockholm Psycho", selected for the Crimetime Specsavers award for the best premiere of a crime novel, and the physicist and astronaut Christer Fuglesang, author of "A crazy adventure in the space".
There will also be the writer Golnaz Hashemzadeh Bonde, who was born in Iran in 1983 and emigrated with her parents to Sweden as a child and addresses the phenomenon of migration in her work, as well as the writer and illustrator Henrik Tamm, and the authors of the series "Bergman", Michael Hjorth and Hans Rosenfeldt, among others.
"We are a country that keeps its commitments, that finds innovative solutions, that is not afraid of taking risks and trying new ways of doing things," said the ambassador about the challenge of starring in a literary fair from a distance.
VIRTUAL AND SUSTAINABLE PAVILION
Sweden will have a virtual pavilion at Filbo, "which is built in the Swedish forest under the northern lights," added the diplomat, who explained that in that space there will be "a universe created so that they can visit our auditorium, explore Swedish literature in our bookstore, get closer to Swedish sustainability and learn more about our work as a sustainable partner in Colombia. "
"We want Colombia to live the Swedish spirit, that virtuality is the best platform to make our country known and reach all corners of Colombia," he said.
The XXXIII edition of Filbo includes more than 600 cultural activities in which more than 400 national and international guests will participate.
"This is a great opportunity to continue that structural dialogue as a society around culture and reading. The pandemic has given us great challenges and has forced us to use the best of technologies, we are going to reach more audiences and many more people, "said Andrés López Valderrama, executive president of Corferias, the venue that each year houses Filbo.
"(The virtual nature of Filbo) allows us to extend to all regions, not only in Colombia but also in neighboring countries that are interested in our fair," said the president of the Colombian Book Chamber (CCB), Enrique González Villa .
