Spanish Cooperation Cultural Centres
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Cultural Centre of Spain in San Salvador
History The Cultural Centre of Spain in San Salvador (CCSSS) was officially opened in 1998. Like most Cultural Centres, there is no specific date for its origin, as the Centre was inherited from the former Salvadoran Institute of Hispanic Culture. However, since its re-denomination and the acquisition of its headquarters, the Centre has continued to broaden its cultural activity and to become more solidly established as part of the socio-cultural context of El Salvador. This evolution coincided with the ending of the civil war and the signing of the Peace Treaties in 1992, which brought in a new socio-political scene and a period of peace and political stability, which made cultural action not only feasible, but necessary. During its first years of existence, the Cultural Centre was under the direction of the Office of Culture of the Embassy, with support from the former Institute of Hispanic Culture. Nevertheless, its own Director was appointed in July 2005, coinciding with the expansive period of the Spanish Cooperation, thus granting the Centre more possibilities in the programme of activities offered, both in quality and in quantity. The Centre’s first director was Juan Sánchez, who modernised and revitalised the institution. Firstly, the physical space was renovated to give it more personality, with a red and white decorative scheme and cement floors. This building, a priori, offered little scope for expansion, being small and hemmed in between the Embassy and the Technical Cooperation Office. Nevertheless, a project was set in motion, with repercussions extending beyond the Centre’s walls. Cultural cooperation was assigned a generous budget, which enabled a broad programme of activities to be offered. Moreover, these were not limited to the capital but reached many other parts of the country. Outstanding projects from that first
stage of the Centre’s existence include Invasión en el Parque (Invasion in the Park), the Youth Art Award and the publication of the Revuelta (Uprising) collection. The CCSSS became consolidated as a space for encounter and a reference point in the fields of art and design – the Centre’s logo was acclaimed and created a trend. Programmes of activities for children, literary presentations and drama projects were also initiated. Another highlight of those initial years was the crucial support provided by the Centre in the creation of the National Dance Company. The second Director, Fernando Fajardo, took over in 2010 with a very different proposal, partly due to the economic crisis in Spain, which had provoked a considerable reduction in the funds available. His management focused on new processes of collective decision and social participation. The Centre had long sought to gain additional physical infrastructure, and in 2011 it was able to lease a nearby space, where a new project began to take shape: La Casa Tomada (Under New Ownership]). This project was undertaken by different collectives, with diverse interests but a common goal: the transformation of La Casa Tomada into a space of encounter, debate and freedom, with no prerequisites or barriers to participation. EU funds were of crucial importance, enabling the consolidation of one of its flagship projects, Cultura entre Todxs para Construir Nuevos Mundos (All Together for Culture, Building New Worlds). With the additional resources and equipment available, La Casa Tomada provided numerous training and education programmes, together with mediation and participation initiatives involving the adjacent neighbourhood of Las Palmas. During these first two stages of its existence, the CCSSS was staffed by a small team of local
