César Antonio Molina in conversation with Angélica Tanarro

Essay and poetry are César Antonio Molina’s preferred genres, for which he has obtained the highest awards and decorations both in Spain and abroad. However he has also written works of memoir and travel writing. A chronicler of his times, his facet as a journalist has always accompanied his literary career. Cultural management and political positions are also part of his background: he was Minister of Culture between 2007 and 2009 in one of Jose Luis Rodríguez Zapatero’s governments, and has also run the Cervantes Institute, the Círculo de Bellas Artes and the Casa del Lector. The last of his almost fifty books (including Olas en la noche, La caza de los intelectuales, Lugares donde se calma el dolor, La poesía es un error necesario...) has the provocative title of ¡Qué bello será vivir sin cultura! (“How lovely it would be to live without culture!”). In it, he asks about the role of art, literature and beauty in a world dominated by social networks, populism and fake news. He also proposes some hopeful responses to these questions.

He will talk to the journalist and writer Angélica Tanarro.