No. 2 - Its Gran Canaria Magazine

34
GET TO KNOW GRAN CANARIA I CONOCE GRAN CANARIA Nº 2
Benito Pérez Galdós
A more intimate and human side
BY JONÁS OLIVA
Among the many cultural attractions in Las Palmas
de Gran Canaria, and standing out as one of
the most celebrated literary figures in the city and
in Spain, is Benito Pérez Galdós (1843-1920), whose
name and legacy continues to be highly present
in the landscape and among the townsfolk of the
island’s capital city. And, as only he himself could
manage, he is hot news in this the year of the centenary
of his death, the so-called 'Galdós biennium',
which takes up a huge part of the cultural
agenda that is being celebrated in honour of the
figure of the author. It comes as no surprise either,
as he is the most prolific, widely-read and studied
19th century writer in the Spanish language, considered
one of the leading exponents of the realist
novel and whose works rate alongside those
of Miguel de Cervantes, according to experts. For
this reason, a visit to the house where he was
born and spent his childhood, on calle Cano, No.6,
which has been turned into a museum, is an absolute
must for anyone coming to the heart of the
historic neighbourhood of Triana. This institution,
run by the Cabildo de Gran Canaria, is home to an
important collection of books, pictures, drawings,
furniture and Galdós’ personal belongings. Together
they make up a valuable collection that provides
a fascinating insight into the life of the author of
novels such as Fortunata y Jacinta, Doña Perfecta,
Misericordia or the Episodios Nacionales collection.
The museum also houses the famous Retrato
de Benito Pérez Galdós, a portrait of the author
by post-impressionist painter Joaquín Sorolla, in
1894, that portrays the novelist at the age of 51 in
a quite unorthodox and innovative pose, which
has perhaps become the writer’s visual icon. This
oil painting reveals him in a certain sombre pose,
sitting with his right arm resting on the back of a
bench, holding a cigarette with a mouthpiece and
tightly gripping a walking stick with his left hand,
with a painting of a marina in the background. The
museum also houses the stone sculpture commissioned
as a kind of monument by poet Tomás
Morales to sculptor Victorio Macho, just a few days
after Galdós passed away. And, until 15h December,
visitors can go along to an essential exhibition
at the National Library, entitled La Verdad Humana
(the human truth). It is a journey through the life of
Benito Pérez Galdós the novelist, journalist, editor,
politician, musician, dramatist, painter and art collector,
highly talented in all his facets and, above
all, committed to a society whom he described
majestically in his works.
Although he was a thoughtful and withdrawn
character, preferring to listen rather than to speak,
Galdós is considered by many as the most important
man in Spanish culture of the time. His
first works were quickly translated into many different
languages and they remain relevant today,
thanks to the virtuousity with which he described
his characters with absolute realism and humanity,
with an exquisite dose of irony. He was passionate
about ordinariness, the daily lives of people who
were the salt of the earth in the places he lived
and visited: traders, teachers, lawyers, doctors and
admirable women who were able to ridicule the
bourgeoisie who hid their miseries behind such
meticulous appearances. This exhibition offers an
exhaustive journey through the life of Benito Pérez
Galdós, culminating in what might have been the
nucleus of his source of inspiration, personality and
passions; with family photographs, recalling his
early childhood years, his education at the Colegio
de San Agustín in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria or
his first love, his cousin Sisita. In addition to this are
manuscripts for works such as Marianela or Gloria,
proofs such as El Caballero Encantado or copies of
the newspaper Ómnibus, that reveal Galdós’ writing
and journalistic prowess, but also personal belongings
such as his pictorical works, his painting
palette or the gramophone with which he used to
listen to Beethoven or Mozart.
The Exhibition La verdad humana also invites visitors
to gain an insight into the author’s house in
the town of San Quintín, in Santander, where is
was once again able to see the sea after spending
years in Madrid; the most human and private side
of Galdós the lover, harking back to the high-profile
love stories he shared with Galicia-born Emilia
Pardo-Bazán or Lorenza Cobián. His infidelity with
the former inspired him to write two novels on
adultery, while Cobián was the mother of his only
child, a daughter. Visitors will also see Galdós the
friend of personalities such as Fernando León y
Castillo, Menéndez Pelayo, Leopoldo Alas Clarín or
Casa Museo Benito Pérez Galdós
José María de Pereda, with whom despite enjoying
a strong friendship he had fiery arguments
due to their ideological differences and their
literary conceptions. And Galdós the politician,
whose career started out thanks to Práxedes
Mateo-Sagasta, a leader of the liberal revolution
and the establishment of individual freedoms
and parliamentarianism in Spain, who was influential
in the Gran Canarian joining the House of
Commons through Guayana. This experience is
highlighted in the exhibition of several official
documents, and also helped him observe, analyse
and capture the reality of Spanish society in
his novels.
This exhibition, organised by the Government
of the Canary Islands, the Spanish National Library,
Spanish Culture in Action and the Cabildo
de Gran Canaria, is part of a programme entitled
‘The Canaries, the land of Galdós’, dedicated to
commemorating the centenary of the death
of the writer, organised by the island’s Cabildo,
the regional government and the Las Palmas
de Gran Canaria City Council. Entry is free and
must be booked beforehand and there are guided
tours from Tuesday to Sunday, from 10:00 to
18:00, at the Benito Pérez Galdós House Museum,
situated on calle Cano, No.6 in Las Palmas
de Gran Canaria.