Illustrating Spanish culture

With Spain chosen country of honor for the recently-concluded 16th Beijing International Book Fair 2009, Beijing is seeing a rash of Spain-related events.

An ongoing exhibition Illustrisimos in Beijing Cervantes Institute is displaying illustrations in Spanish books for youngsters. Most of them are from fairy tales or classics, such as Snow White and Robinson Crusoe.

However, none of the depictions are Disney-style but instead are more exaggerated and powerful. For example, an illustration from a story Renato that shows someone cutting down an old tree, is bathed in crimson to convey a sense of horror.

There are also illustrations from modern Spanish books aimed at teenagers. A scene in Endless Story features a boy sitting in a library, reading. Sunshine penetrates the windows, creating a warm scene.

Spain sent 24 representatives of some of the country's biggest publishing houses to the fair, who provided a splendid overview of both Spanish classics and contemporary works, offering Chinese readers a peek into typical Spanish culture and lifestyle.

Some of these can be borrowed from the library at Beijing Cervantes Institute, whose collection of more than 7,000 includes works by Jorge Luis Borges, Miguel de Cervantes, and Julio Cortazar.

A new semester of Spanish language course is set to start. A 60-hour course costs less than 2,000 yuan, with classes ranging from beginner to advanced. You can also try Curso AVE, a special online course, priced at 325 yuan, which enables you to learn Spanish words, pronunciation and grammar within four months.

Beijing Cervantes Institute, A1 Gongti Nanlu, Chaoyang district. 5879-9666

工体南路甲1号塞万提斯学院大厦

Gan Tian