It’s been decades since Antonio Aguayo and his wife, Loli Corral, They left their native Galicia and set out on a journey south. He ended up taking them to Jerez de la Frontera, in Andalusia, and they planted a flag there when he joined the project of a publishing house that he chairs today: Peripecias Libros. This is not a typical company: it works with the aim of giving a voice to Galician authors, helping them to publish their works, in bilingual format, on the other side of the country. Through it, marriage creates an ecosystem so that Galician culture feels comfortable in Andalusian lands. And not just in literature: this year, on the occasion of the publication of his book “Letters to Michi”, Mugard singer-songwriter Xoán Rubia imported his compositions into a live show. Both wanted to become, in their own way, “ambassadors” of Galicia. Today, Peripecias has just published a new book, written by Antonio and Loli themselves, dedicated to the monastery of San Martino de Xuvia,located in Narón (A Coruña); first church on the Camino Inglés and declared an Asset of Cultural Interest (BIC).
Both recalled, in a conversation with ABC, the beginning of their story, the one who, from the beginning, “has a lot to do with books”. Both majoring in art history at USC, they were among the degree’s first graduating classes. And once it was finished, when they were a little over twenty years old, they were offered the opportunity to write a book about the monastery of San Martiño. But on one condition: “without saying anything bad about the Church”; a delicate question due to the uses that the temple had had, used as a hiding place for fugitives during the civil war. “This work of historians was very interesting, but we thought: if we can’t tell the truth, we won’t make a book.” This is the project that you now see coming to fruition, but that would come after decades of dedication to other jobs.
At first, both went to Jaén, the land of Antonio’s ancestors, in search of work, and some time later they went to Puerto de Santa María. They live there today, a short distance from Jerez, Where is the publishing house? “Then we had two daughters and we always dreamed of coming back, but of course they grew up,” and also their attachment to their homeland. Anyway, Loli never forgot her connection with Galicia nor neglected her connection with her family, residing in the parish of Santa Icía, in Narón.
While living there in the south, contact with Peripecias occurred when Antonio decided to publish a book of iconography and They offered him the opportunity to join to the team. Once inside, he “always” advocated “a non-localist character,” despite being a local business. The first book they published in Galician – in a bilingual edition including its Spanish translation –, he recalls, was a collection of poems by Francisco Álvarez-Koki.
Books and songs
Some time later, I chat with the singer-songwriter in Spanish. But once again, Antonio rejected the fact that the work was detached from its original language. “I told him that it could not be published only in Spanish, because he had written it in Galician. And it occurred to us that instead of interspersing [los idiomas] In the bilingual edition we could edit it in Galician on one side and have it appear in Spanish on the other when we flip it. It turned out to be a very easy to read, very beautiful book,” he comments. In fact, this year they organized a Rubia concert in Jerez, taking advantage of his presentation. Thus, through Peripecias, the couple Not only did he import some Galician literature; also his music.
“In this way we want to be a little bit the ambassadors of Galician culture in Cádiz, in Jerez. We don’t want to brag about anything, we just need to make Galician culture a little more universal.” Antonio thinks. They experience the publication of their book on San Martiño as “a dream”. The project had been stalled for years, but they were clear about their desire to undertake it. “When the circumstance arrived that Antonio had the publishing house, the right moment arrived. “We had time and we had no censorship.” unlike years ago, Loli said. Antonio completes his explanation: “We had to publish it [para] that Galician culture was also known in Jerez. The monastery was, in the 12th century, one of the most important in Galicia and even in Spain, because it was one of the first to join the Order of Cluny; and it was used by kings as a means of exchange. And even more, I think it is important to highlight the importance of the monastery and its universal iconographic program throughout Spain.
Loli and Antonio, at the ends of the table, during the presentation of their book on San Martiño de Xuvia, this month, in Ferrol
A temple linked to them
“For us, it’s a bit of our life’s work. Even though it’s not the first one we’ve released, it’s one we’ve been thinking about for many years, one we’ve been wanting to do. The idea was born a few years ago, when Xoán Rubia told us why not publish an article on the subject in magazines. “We started digging and found that it was a much longer and more important iconographic program than we thought.” Antonio tells it. So they decided to create this book that they had wanted “forever”.
For Loli, the creation of this work has a double aspect: the monastery will always be linked to her “life”, to her “memories”. “It’s my childhood. I went there with my mother. Here we do not know it by San Martiño de Xuvia, but by O Couto or O Convento; “That’s what he always calls it,” he shares. He is grateful “in a very special way” to be able to experience this feat with her. “He taught me to remember all these things. And I think it’s heritage: Ultimately, preserving this church means preserving the memory of many people; among others, mine”, he decides. “It must also be valued by all the inhabitants of the surrounding area, who are in solidarity with it. There are stories of civil war, of escapees, which they told to my mother and which I also learned elsewhere (…). It is in the memory of many of those who are still alive. However, he says, there is a story to discover.
