Recap of the LAC–EU Roundtables on Literary Networks
Eduardo Ruiz Rosa, Andreia Moroni, and Marina Lika Uehara
On 17 September, two roundtables on literary networks organised by Prof. Dunia Gras (LAC-EU, Universitat de Barcelona) took place during the LAC–EU Summer School. Open to the public, the sessions featured writers Fernanda García Lao (Argentina), Quinny Martínez (Colombia), Teresa Ruiz Rosas (Peru), Andreia Moroni (Translator and General Coordinator of the Instituto Guimarães Rosa Barcelona) and Eduardo Ruiz Sosa (Writer, Curator of the KM Amèrica Festival, and Editor at Candaya), who reflected on the dynamics of cultural exchange between Latin America, the Caribbean, and Europe.
The first session, “Barcelona, a Literary Capital of LAC?,” featured Andreia Moroni (Translator and General Coordinator, Instituto Guimarães Rosa Barcelona) and Eduardo Ruiz Sosa (Writer, Curator of the KM Amèrica Festival, and Editor at Candaya). The discussion explored intersections of literature, language, circulation, and cultural exchange in Barcelona. It highlighted the KM Amèrica Festival—a literary festival that seeks to create spaces of encounter beyond commercial promotion—and independent publishers such as Candaya as active agents reshaping literary geographies. The speakers also emphasized the role of Barcelona, with its associative networks and multilinguistic landscape, as fertile ground for such projects.
The roundtable was moderated by Marina Lika Uehara, a doctoral fellow in the LAC–EU network. As an early-career researcher studying how Latin American literature is translated and represented in European publishing houses, she shared her reflections on the experience:
“The opportunity to have led the roundtable was extremely valuable, and I believe it is important for us, as researchers, to have the chance to guide discussions based on questions we consider relevant — not only for the topics of our project, but also to foster collaboration and academic and professional synergies.”
Quinny Martínez, Teresa Ruiz Rosas, and Fernanda García Lao
The second roundtable, “Meeting of Latin American and Caribbean Women Writers in Barcelona,” brought together three writers from Latin America: Fernanda García Lao (Argentina), Quinny Martínez (Colombia), and Teresa Ruiz Rosas (Peru). Their conversation explored diverse literary practices and migrations across Europe, Latin America, and the Caribbean. From their personal and professional perspectives, they reflected on how displacement fosters creative transformation and how writing across languages and borders reshapes notions of literature and belonging.
This session was moderated by Tamara Albarracín Sánchez, also a doctoral fellow in the LAC–EU network, whose research focuses on contemporary Latin American and Caribbean women writers living in Europe. She reflected:
“It was the first time I had done it, and I think it went well: the guests spoke a lot, without much need for me to intervene. Since the three of them were very different, I was worried about finding points of convergence, but they put in a lot of effort and energy. It was fun for the audience too, partly because it stood out from the rest of the week’s activities, both in format and in tone.”