empordà

Car windows and roofs hit and over 20 injured, as hail to continue on Wednesday

Winemakers hope to produce 2.5 million bottles a year and attract tourists to site transformed by RCR Architects

Festivals, fairs, walking tours and more

‘Éloge d’Amour’ at Can Mario features the contemporary work of Xavier Escribà alongside ‘The beauty of the human form’ by Xita Fornt

Some areas are to apply for government aid after heavy storm leaves thousands of euros damage in its wake

From this Friday the 29^th of October to the 5^th of February 2017, the State Hermitage Museum in Saint Petersburg, Russia, is holding the exhibition ‘Surrealism in Catalonia. The artists of Empordà and Salvador Dalí’. The exhibition presents 70 works by 29 different Catalan artists from private collections or loaned by museums such as the Thyssen-Bornemisza in Madrid, Cau Ferrat in Sitges, De l’Empordà, in Figueres and Art in Cadaqués, one of the Costa Brava’s most iconic villages. The goal of the exhibition is to mark the importance of the surrealist art movement in Catalonia, mainly cultivated in Empordà – northern Catalonia - in the history of European Surrealism. Amongst the 70 pieces displayed in the exhibition there are paintings, but also works of sculpture and graphic art, such as the masterpiece by Dalí ‘Dream Caused by the Flight of a Bee around a Pomegranate a Second Before Awakening’.

The Empordà wine Appellation located in north-eastern Catalonia has seen a significant increase in its export levels in 2012. With more than 40 small cellars and cooperatives, Empordà has a large assortment of red, white and rosé wines. Garnatxa of Empordà, a sweet dessert wine is also a typical drink from this area of Catalonia located in the Costa Brava. The main destinations of Empordà exports were the United States, Germany, Norway, Switzerland and Canada. These exports increased by 13% over last year with more than 750,000 bottles sold abroad from the total 5 million bottles produced.

The Cadaqués Orchestra played ‘Concerto libero’, an unfinished work for piano and cello at the Peralada’s Carme Church, in northern Catalonia. The Costa Brava festival is celebrating the 100th anniversary of the composer’s birth whose works have achieved international acclaim. The world premiere of the piece by Xavier Montsalvatge was the highlight of the concert which was dedicated to the composer, one of the most prominent figures in Catalan music.

Catalan interior minister Felip Puig said that weather conditions have improved for dealing with the fires in the Alt Empordà region, saying this morning that he was “reasonably optimistic” that the it would be under control this Tuesday. The fires are currently in a reasonably stable state. The blaze was started on Sunday by a discarded cigarette butt, affecting an area of 13.000 hectares. Weather conditions were favourable for tackling the blaze and remained so for much of Tuesday.

The death toll of the devastating wildfires in the Alt Empordà region, in north-east Catalonia, has risen to four this Monday, after a 64 year-old Frenchman died in hospital from his burns. He suffered 80% burns to his body. A father and daughter died on Sunday after jumping off a cliff to escape the flames in Portbou. A third man died of a heart attack in the small town of Llers. Eight injured people were admitted in hospitals in Catalonia. Six of them are in a critical condition, according to the Health Department. In total, forty-seven people have been treated for injures during the fires, although only eight remain in hospital.

34% of the bottles have been sold in the Girona region, but Barcelona is still “the pending market”. Sales have been 5% higher in comparison to 2010 and 18% higher compared to the last four years. The president of the wine designation, Josep Blanch, said that this “achievement” proves that Empordà DO has consolidated because since its beginnings, it has been growing year by year in a “consistent” way.

The Catalan town of Figueres will host the first edition of the International Circus Festival from March 1st to 4th. Three special trains have been arranged to bring viewers from París and Milan. The International Circus Festival includes 52 artists from 13 different countries. It will take place in Sant Ferran Castle.

Just like every Christmas, traditional Living Nativity Scenes around Catalonia are on show, this year with an expected increase of attendance despite cuts in public subsidies. Towns are unwilling to let budget cuts affect them and they have combined imagination, volunteer work and citizen involvement to maintain the tradition.