CCPE Rosario

Cultural Centre Parque de España, Rosario

The Cultural Centre Parque de España (CCPE) is the product of a shared history, that of the thousands of Spanish immigrants who, towards the end of the 19 th century, having crossed the Atlantic, disembarked at the historic docks of Puerto de Rosario and began to assimilate life in this small city, which was beginning to flourish. In Rosario, descendants of those immigrants forged the idea of symbolically bringing together the two nations, in a space that would become emblematic of that meeting of cultures. In bringing the project to fruition, far from imagining a static monument, they set out to build a living memory, one representing an evolving intangible culture. This artifact would first be a foundational tie with the nation’s Hispanic history and origins, later a permanent bridge of exchange with contemporary Spain and finally a link in the Ibero-American creative chain. In an unprecedented project, the municipal authorities of Rosario and the Spanish Government agreed to combine resources in raising this Complex, creating both a home for the proposed educational and cultural centre and a generously-sized public space. To do so, the Parque de España Cultural Foundation was created, composed of the Government of Spain, the Municipality of Rosario and the local Spanish community, represented by the Federation of Spanish Associations of the Province of Santa Fe. The building’s construction was based on a project by the Catalan architect Oriol Bohigas, under the direction of the Rosario architect, Horacio Quiroga. The construction, inaugurated in 1992, was not only one of the largest such investments made by Spain abroad, but the cornerstone of the city’s urban transformation during that period. Anchored on the banks of the Paraná – after the Amazon, the second longest river in South America, at nearly 5,000 km – the CCPE is an essential part of the Complex, offering outstanding versatility in its multi-purpose spaces. The CCPE project recovered the emblematic character of the nineteenth-century port tunnels on the site, preserving fundamental elements of the original architecture, and transforming the derelict building into a modern, versatile space for the people of Rosario. The theatre within the Complex has a large entrance hall, the main auditorium, seating 518 people, a stage measuring 12 by 10 metres, dressing rooms, simultaneous interpretation booths and air conditioning. It also has a concert piano and an acoustic panelling system that allows the reverberation in the chamber to be adjusted according to need. The performing arts can also presented in the outdoor amphitheatre, which has 300 seats and a magnificent stage overlooking the river. Art exhibits are displayed in the Galleries, three interconnected domed tunnels, with 180 linear metres of exhibition space and a total surface area of 500 square metres. The chamber known as Tunnel No. 4 seats 130 people and is perfect for small-format concerts, drama and lectures. The CCPE also has a media library, free to access, for reference and research, with a wealth of books, video and acoustic archives. This space is equipped with modular furniture and is also used for lectures and workshops with up to 30 people. The Parque de España Centre for Historical Studies and Information, which preserves documents on the Ibero-American past and makes them available for reference, is also situated within this Cultural Complex.

1. Excellently sited between the river and the city, the Parque de España Cultural Complex, designed by the Catalán Oriol Bohigas, is of great architectural originality.

Last but not least, the Patio de Cipreses is an open space with a capacity for about 800 people that is used for concerts and other large events.

Lines of action

The CCPE, which was created by and for the cultural communities of Argentina and Spain, has made a significant addition to the cultural panorama of the city. Its management model, as a mixed institution, is fundamental to the Centre’s planning and actions. From its initial stages, the CCPE’s policy of shared responsibility has marked its strategy of collaboration and support with other cultural, political and social institutions within the local administration, giving rise to a rich and productive synergy of cultural life in the city. At present, the Cultural Centre has seven main fields of activity: network cooperation (coordinating projects and actions in line with the CCPE’s tradition); Spanish culture; training in culture and education; creative cultural industries; visual and performing arts; philosophy, science and humanities; inclusion and emerging rights.

Situating the CCPE in the local context

Beautifully located, resembling a balcony overlooking the Paraná River, the CCPE rests on the shores of Rosario like a magnificent brick-built ship, a perfect metaphor, paying tribute to the thousands of Spanish migrants who crossed the Atlantic in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries and who rapidly became part of the local culture, enriching it with their knowledge, arts and crafts. When inaugurated in 1992, Oriol Bohigas’ design became part of the urban fabric, like an enormous ship anchored on the banks of the Paraná, reopening a river port that had long been closed to the inhabitants of Rosario. With this milestone in its history, the city began a historical recovery of its coastal foreshore, transforming a neglected space into a magnificent vantage point over the river. The CCPE is an integral part of this complex, and since 2002 it has been managed under an agreement of mutual cooperation between the city authorities and the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID). From the outset, the CCPE applied an innovative model of cultural management in the city, adopting a broad and unconventional concept of culture, linked to education and awareness-raising in this sector, paying special attention to emerging forms of artistic expression and encouraging local cultural industries. This experience became a model for others to follow. Today, as in 1993, thousands of people from Rosario continue to enjoy the best of local, national and international art and culture in the CCPE, learning, fostering new talents, debating, generating critical thought on areas of concern and constructing new, vibrant experiences.

The CCPE, promoting culture as part of international cooperation

In assessing the role of the CCPE as an agent of culture and cooperation, let us first acknowledge the unique cultural identity of the city of Rosario, which has a long history and a wealth of tradition, arising from the contributions of different communities. Since its creation, the CCPE has shown that cooperation in the field of culture is, indeed, a creator of citizenship and a source of sustainable results and experience. In this, the Centre has provided a model for international cooperation since 1993. Reflection on its achievements in the cultural world of Rosario has led the Centre to maintain its understanding of culture as a collective action, resulting in a dynamic of change, working via cooperative relationships to advance the city’s development and enhance the quality of life of its citizens. Argentina and Spain have a long tradition in bilateral treaties of cooperation, proof that they can and will, in theory and practice, continue along the path for culture and development traced out previously, despite the realignment produced by Argentina’s change of status (it is no longer considered a priority country for assistance, and therefore is not addressed directly in the Master Plan of Spanish Cooperation). The strategic position of the CCPE maintains the fundamental idea that culture should be managed as a transcendent resource, strengthening and contributing to development, collaborating in

2. do it, an itinerant exhibition organised by Independent Curators International, from New York, at the CCPE in 2018

2 social inclusion and promoting the generation of knowledge and responsible thought.

Strategic pillars

Based on three fundamental pillars – innovation, inclusion and sustainability – the CCPE applies strategies aimed at establishing productive synergies with the actors that shape the cultural panorama of the city. Always taking into account the Sustainable Development Goals, the CCPE operates, on the one hand, in accordance with the positions adopted by the municipal authorities of Rosario with respect to cultural matters (its 2030 Strategic Plan identifies Rosario as a Multicultural and Educating City), and on the other, in line with the objectives of Spanish Cooperation’s foreign cultural action. With an agenda that is varied, intense and plainly visible on the cultural map of the city, the CCPE encourages young people to participate, fosters new languages, and seeks new ways of understanding and communicating. In addition, the Centre works to generate human capital in the cultural sector, with special emphasis on the creative industries and projects of a socio-cultural nature, and to create a critical mass resulting in cosmopolitan dialogue among creators, presenters and the public, with open debate and discussion of emerging rights. The CCPE projects are focused, in particular, on the visual and performing arts, film, literature, thought and cultural education. This outlook is determined by the C+D (Culture for Development) strategic pillar, on which are based other concerns such as environmental issues, gender awareness, cultural citizenship and human rights. The CCPE is a pioneering institution in social and cultural innovation, and in its vocation of serving society will continue to promote cultural cooperation for development as a means of social transformation.

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3. Aerial view of the CCPE Amphitheatre

4. Concert in the Principe de Asturias Theatre

We are part of it

Matías Martínez

Actor, director and playwright. Director of the theatre companies La Piara and Tragedias Argentinas. Author of award-winning shows such as Pelo de Grasa (Grease Mop) and Mein Karl.

The Cultural Centre Parque de España is the City of the Immortals imagined by Borges; its shape and intricate architecture – vast and labyrinthian – let us know that it will persist when we are no longer. Meanwhile, in its galleries, theatres, esplanades and tunnels, we the artists work as we please, and the Centre surrenders to our wishes, allowing itself to be moulded to our fancy. Those of us who inject its concrete with art come to form part of the structure, and hence become immortal.

Unavoidable reference

Graciela Carnevale

Conceptual artist, member of the Vanguard Art Group of Rosario, one of those behind the famous artistic-political project known internationally as Tucumán Arde.

The Cultural Centre Parque de España is an essential part of the artistic scene in this city, not just for its high-quality programming but also because of the routemap followed. The artists of Rosario have enjoyed a fruitful relationship with this institution, based on collaboration and exchange, over many years. It is always open to dialogue, alert to new challenges, accepting of diversity and interested in all aspects and dimensions of culture. The Centre is resolutely committed to issues such as human rights, gender equality and the defence of the environment, and expresses this commitment in all its actions.

A balcony onto the Paraná

Miguel Lifschitz

Governor of the Province of Santa Fe (2015-2019) and former mayor of Rosario (2003-2011).

There is no greater symbol of the fraternal bond between Spain and Argentina than the Cultural Centre Parque de España. The history of its genesis and development illustrates the strength and depth of the profound ties between us. But it also offers something else, based on what was then a novel form of collaboration: international cooperation and the joint organisation of agendas to work with public and private institutions, on both sides of the Atlantic. The CCPE is much more than its school, its park and its Cultural Centre: it is an inspiration; it is the cornerstone of the most important urban transformation that Rosario has experienced in the last hundred years. With the arrival of this Centre, we no longer turned our backs to the Paraná, but looked around to redefine the relationship between ourselves and river, pledging to recover it for all to enjoy. On the banks of the Paraná, Spain helped us give Rosario a balcony onto its river and to embark towards the future.

ARGENTINA Cultural Centre of Spain in Cordoba

Address

Entre Ríos 40, CP X5000AJB, Córdoba

Opened

1998

Web

https://www.ccec.org.ar/