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Bernardo Atxaga awarded the 2017 Liberpress Prize for Literature
2017-10-09 ¦ Prizes
This past weekend the award ceremony was held for the 2017 Liberpress prizes, an international prize that is awarded each year by the Regional Council of Girona, Catalonia. Among this year's winners was writer Bernardo Atxaga, who received his prize for "a body of literature that is filled with sensitivity, originality and richness."
The Liberpress prizes were first awarded in 1999 as a way to promote literature and solidarity. Prizes are awarded to individuals and entities from around the world in recognition of their contribution to culture, journalism and art. This is one the most prestigious prizes in Catalonia.
Among the winners of this year's edition is Basque writer Bernardo Atxaga, in the category of literature. The award ceremony was held this past weekend in Girona. Apart from Atxaga, other winners were the Catalan artist Jaume Capdevila I Herrero, the Femen Group, Italian filmmaker Paolo Bianchini, and Greek singer and activist Maria Farantouri.
Bernardo Atxaga was awarded the 2017 Liberpress Prize for literature 2017 for his overall body of literature, which is "built with originality, sensitivity and wit, and which has insisted on the collective memory with tolerance, humanity, kindness and courage. He is a unique writer, one whose multi-faceted output and commitment to the values of freedom and human dignity has captured the attention of readers in many different languages and from many different cultures”.