Oaxaca.-The Government of Mexico, through the Ministry of Culture, awards the 2020 National Prize for Arts and Literature to artists and researchers whose work and work have contributed to enriching the country’s cultural heritage in the fields of Linguistics and Literature. ; Fine arts; History, Social Sciences and Philosophy; as well as Popular Arts and Traditions.
In the field of Linguistics and Literature, this year the poet, narrator, essayist and translator Adolfo Castañón, born in Mexico City in 1952, is recognized. Prolific author and member of the Mexican Academy of Language since 2003, Castañón is the creator of works like The wren, Memories of Coyoacán, The grotto has two entrances (Mazatlán Prize for Literature 1995), Trip to Mexico (Xavier Villaurrutia Award 2008), Passing places, among many others.
On the other hand, Alfredo López Austin is recognized with the award in History, Social Sciences and Philosophy. Born in Chihuahua in 1936, he is a leading student of pre-Columbian Mexico and indigenous peoples, as well as their worldview. Among his works are Man-god. Religion and politics in the Nahuatl world, Brief history of the Mesoamerican religious tradition, Aztec ritual games, among other. He has been distinguished with the National University Award, the honorary doctorate from the Veracruzana University in 2015 and the Fray Bernardino de Sahagún Medal in 2019, to name a few.
The Coahuila sculptor Manuel de Jesús Hernández, “Hersúa”, has won the award in the field of Fine Arts. He studied painting at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), the same time in which he founded “Other Art”, a group of visual artists who sought to experiment in various disciplines. He participated in the planning of the Sculptural Space of the UNAM, with the creation of Bird two. His work can also be seen in the garden of the Museum of Modern Art in Mexico City, as well as in Cuba, Australia and numerous museums around the world.
Maestro Mario Agustín Gaspar, a Michoacan artisan, is this year’s winner in the field of Popular Arts and Traditions. From a very young age, he learned to work with pre-Hispanic lacquer, cane paste and other traditional materials from his region. He has been president of the Union of Decorating Craftsmen and of the Union of Craftsmen of the House of the Eleven Patios; Furthermore, he has represented Mexican artisans in the United States, Spain, Guatemala and Venezuela. In 2010 he received the Presea Vasco de Quiroga.
Aware of the need to make visible the work of women in the areas of science and the arts, and promote gender equality in the cultural sphere, the Secretary of Culture of the Government of Mexico, Alejandra Frausto Guerrero, has instructed to convene the Council Award to award an extraordinary distinction for an outstanding woman in these fields.
In addition, the person in charge of the country’s cultural policy affirmed that “there will already be conditions for us to carry out a ceremony to celebrate this great recognition from the Government of Mexico to the trajectory of each of the winners.”
This recognition granted by the Government of Mexico through the Ministry of Culture endorses the commitment to promote and disseminate the work of artists and researchers, as well as creation in all its manifestations, positioning the country as a cultural benchmark at an international level.
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