Barcelona to land Shanghai for cultural week

BARCELONA - The city of Barcelona will be on display in Shanghai this November as part of "Barcelona Catalonia Culture Week", where Shanghai citizens will have the opportunity to learn about northern Spain's culture.

According to Alexis Roig, president of the Catalan Institute of China that organizes the event, "a piece of Barcelona and Catalonia will be taken to China", he said during the presentation of the program on Monday at Casa Asia here.

Attending the press conference were representatives from the regional government of Catalonia, Generalitat, Barcelona's city council, and the Chinese consulate.

Barcelona Catalonia Culture Week is being held to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Catalan Institute of China and the 15th anniversary of the twinning between Barcelona and Shanghai.

Between Nov. 1 and 8, Shanghai citizens will be able to take part in around 30 free activities that aim to promote Catalan culture and the city of Barcelona. These activities, which include exhibitions, workshops, conferences, concerts and cinema, will cover areas such as music, painting, architecture, design, economy and gastronomy.

The exhibition "Discovering Gaudi 3D" by Barcelona photographer Gabi Beneyto will show Gaudi's main works through large 3D pictures; "Dali and Media" will present 200 pieces (paintings, press, collages) which will show the relationship between the painter Salvador Dali and the media.

Also, Castellers (Catalan human towers) will take part in the activities held during that week, a very typical tradition in Catalan culture.

Some of these activities will be kept open for months and are expected to receive more than half a million visitors.

At the presentation, Chinese vice consul Tang Lingyun highlighted that "Barcelona and Shanghai have many aspects in common," as both are economic, financial, cultural, maritime transport and exhibitions centers.

Meanwhile, Roig highlighted that "Barcelona Catalonia Culture Week" was an exceptional initiative led and organized by Catalan citizens living in China.