I had been at my brother’s place for two years when we received a phone call from Mestres, the owner of the workshop a floor beneath the apartment rented by our mother. Some immigrants had broken into the apartment and made themselves at home. Mestres had called the police. For months my brother had been emptying out our mother’s apartment. However, I had been unable to go to gather my things from there. In the final years of her life, our mother had put time and money into maintaining an apartment that did not warrant its upkeep. Now the doors were broken in and the walls were covered in mould. There was no electricity. The immigrants had installed a stove in the middle of the dining room. In the middle bedroom, where my things had been pushed, I found a wooden chest with toys in it from when I was kid, a bag of books, and some folders. In one of these folders was a series of interviews I had done with various Catalan writers, which I had published in the daily newspaper Avui between December 1984 and April 1986, just after I had completed university. Four of these writers were exiles: Pere Calders, Avel·lí Artís, Xavier Benguerel and Josep Ferrater Mora. nsfer tra 03 // 2008 On the trail of exile Julià Guillamon 20
Transcript
I had been at my brother’s place for two years when we received a phone call from Mestres, the owner of the workshop a floor beneath the apartment rented by our mother. Some immigrants had broken into the apartment and made themselves at home. Mestres had called the police. For months my brother had been emptying out our mother’s apartment. However, I had been unable to go to gather my things from there. In the final years of her life, our mother had put time and money into maintaining an apartment that did not warrant its upkeep. Now the doors were broken in and the walls were covered in mould. There was no electricity. The immigrants had installed a stove in the middle of the dining room. In the middle bedroom, where my things had been pushed, I found a wooden chest with toys in it from when I was kid, a bag of books, and some folders. In one of these folders was a series of interviews I had done with various Catalan writers, which I had published in the daily newspaper Avui between December 1984 and April 1986, just after I had completed university. Four of these writers were exiles: Pere Calders, Avel·lí Artís, Xavier Benguerel and Josep Ferrater Mora.
nsfertra03 / / 2 0 0 8
On the trail of exile
Julià Guillamon
20
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TheoldestoftheseinterviewsiswithAvel·líArtís-Gener,orTísner,whoappearsonthecoverofAvuiathomeinahousecoat,smokingapipe.Inthisinterview,TísnersaysthingsIhadforgottenhehadsaidatthetime.Heexplainsthatin1961,whenhehadstartedwritingthenovelLes dues funcions del circ(TheTwoFunctionsoftheCircus),hehadreturnedtoMartinique,wherehehadbeenbroughtaftertheSpanishCivilWarwhentheshipbringinghimtoMexicoandtoexilehadbrokendowninthemiddleoftheAtlantic.ThenovelrecreatesthesojournoftwobrothersatFort-de-Francewhiletheyawaitrepairsontheirboat,justasAvel·líArtíshadawaitedrepairsonhisboatinthesummerof1939.TísnerandIspokeaboutthetripshehadmadetoMartiniqueinsearchoflocationsforhisnovel,aboutthehourshehadspentobservingtheislanders,listeningtotheirmannerofspeaking,copyingadvertisementshefoundonthestreets.Descriptionsofthebeachandtheairportinthenovelcomefrompreciseobservations.WealsospokeaboutMexico,aboutthewriterRoure-Torrentandthemother-in-lawofTísner’sbrotherArcadi,themotherofpainterFrancescEspriu,whosevoicesTísnerhadusedforthenarratorofParaules d’Opòton el Vell(WordsoftheElderOpoton).Opoton,thenarrator,isaMexicanwarriorwholinksideasfromacommonpointofreference.Opoton’snarrationtraceshismentalflights,reconstructingaliterarypre-Columbianchronicleofevents,untilOpotonloseshistrainofthinkingandthenovelends.IinterviewedXavierBenguerelathishomeonFrancescCarbonellStreetinPedralbes.Intheinterview’spublishedphotosofhim,Benguerelappearsinadarkdressshirt,ontheterraceofhisapartmentinfrontofantiquebas-reliefsoffigureswithpatternsaroundthem.WespeakaboutIcària, Icària andhistranslationsofLa Fontaine.Towardstheendofourtime,IaskBenguerelaboutChileandhetalksaboutthemomenthereturnedfromexileandabouttheadventuresoftheClubdelsNovel·listes,butnotChile.InneitheroftheseinterviewswithTísnerandBenguereldowespeakaboutexile.
Avel·líArtís-GenerandXavierBenguereldidnottalkaboutexilebecauseexilewasnotapositiveexperienceforthem.Forthesewriters,exilemeantstigmatisationanditwasasourceofshame.Thiscanbeseenclearlyintheirmemoirs.Benguerel’serraticMemòria d’un exili. Xile 1940-1952(MemoirsofanExile:Chile1940-1952)side-stepsthefundamentalaspectsofhislifeinSantiago.Instead,thememoirreproducessectionsofarticlesfromthejournalGermanor,inwhichBenguereldiscussesaratherinconsequentialtripwithhisfamilytoCorcovado,PuertoAysén,andtheSanRafaelLagooninthesouthofChile.Alargepartofthememoirisdedicatedtoshowingthecraftinessheemployed
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tomakeitpossibletoopenandrunapharmaceuticallaboratoryinChile.Tísner’sViure i veure(ToLiveandSee)alsohasabitofthepicaresqueaboutit,withitsdescriptionsofTísner’sadventuresincinemaandtelevision.Tísner’scarsarelikethedogsandcatsofBenguerel:theyareobjectsofemotionaltransfer,whichspeakofafamiliarworld,placidlyaccommodatedandstable,aplacethatperhapsneverexisted.WhenTísnerreconstructshisreturntoCatalonia,thereisneitherpainnorconflict.
TalkingtothewriterQuimMonzó,thejournalistRamonBarnilsdescribesthesadnesshefeltatseeingTísner,apillarofthemagazinesLa Rambla,L’Esquella de la Torratxa (TheTorratxaCowbell)andEl Be Negre (TheBlackLamb),reducedtoworkingintheeditorialofficesoftele|eXpress, inanobscureandasubordinaterole.InChile,Benguerelhadmademoney,buthewaslikeoneofthecharactersofhisownshortstories—rootless,erased,dividedbetweentwoirreconcilablerealities,likehiseruditeerotomaniacwhokeepshispassionsasecretanddoesnotunderstandhisson.TísnerreturnedtoCataloniawithoutapenny.HelivedpoorlyinaboardinghouseinBarcelonaandwoundupacceptingworkatthenewspaperofoldfriends,whohadcompliedwithFranco.Benguerelkeptalowprofile,maintainingpersonalcommitmentstoonlyRafaelBorràsandtheLarafamily.Idonotknowifhehadanyfriends.Tísnereventuallyprevailedoverhisdemeaningcircumstancesandbecameapublicfigure,acandidateforelectionstotheNacionalistesd’Esquerra,whoappearedonTV3inhisfinalyearsoflife.TísnerandBenguerelwereverydifferent,butinmymemoriesofthem,bothfiguresareblurredintoone.
What should I have asked Tísner and Benguerel about exile?WhatdidIknow,really?WhatshouldIhavesaidtomakethemopenupandremember,withoutreservationsorembellishments,anintimatepartoftheirlivesinToulouseandRoissy,inMexicoandinChile?InmytimeasastudentattheUniversityofBarcelona,studentsofCatalanliteraturetookcoursesinthehistoryoftheCatalanlanguage,itsphonetics,morphology,syntaxanddialectology,becauseCatalanhadtobethefoundationofCatalonia’srenewal.Westudiedverylittleaboutliteratureitself,andhardlyanyonespokeabouttheliteratureofthe1930s.Thebooksthatshouldhavehelpedusdiscovertheintellectualclimateofthe1930sdidnotexist.WegotusedtoseeingtheSpanishCivilWarthroughthedeformedmirrorofanti-Francoism.IhadsomecopiesofVisions de la guerra i la rereguarda(VisionsoftheWarandtheRearguard),withitsdesignbySalvadorSauraandRamonTorrente,whoplayedwiththecoloursoftherepublicanflag.Theonlypre-warnewspapersIeversawwerethosereproducedinthatanthology.Thepost-FrancotransitiondiscreditedpoliticssothataprofoundsilencehungoveranyoneandanythingassociatedwiththeBarcelonaoftheRepublic.ItwasnotuntilmuchlaterthatIbeganmakingimportantconnectionsaboutthings.JoanM.MinguetiBatllorisalvagedthebooksandarticlesofSebastiàGasch,whileValentíSolerpublishedJustCabot’sIndagacions i proposicions (Enquiriesandproposals).Fromreadingthearticlesofthesewritersandthroughtheirexchangeofopinions,forexample,onDalí,“aworldthatwastrue”begantoemergeforme.Irememberadetailthatimpressedme.Tospeakaboutsomebrownshoes,Gaschsaid“somespectatorshoes”.These“spectatorshoes”symbolizedthedreamworldthatGaschcarriedwithhim.
onBrucStreet,PalauiFabrefoundautographs,bookswithdedicationsandmagazinesonmoderndesignthathisfatherhadowned.Inthefoyerofhishome,amongpaintingsbyGausachsandBosch-Roger,therewasacabinetwithtrinketsandobjectsofartlikethosethatwereadvertisedinD’Ací i d’Allà (FromHereandThere).Bitbybit,PalauiFabresoldeverythinghefoundtopayfortheEktachrometransparenciesofthebookshewroteaboutPicasso.Inadrawerofthechildhoodbedroomofhisupper-classfamily,PalauiFabrehadsaveddozensofclippingsfromthemagazineMirador.EveryThursday,aday-boarderclassmateofhiswouldbringthemagazinetotheschool’sboardinghouse,wherePalauiFabrestayed.Homesickinthefirstyearsofthepost-war,PalauiFabrecutoutandarrangedclippingsofthemagazineandassembledthemintoakindofencyclopaedia,whichhereadoverandoveragain.Inmyinterviewswithhim,hecouldconfirmthathestillknewmanyoftheseclippingsbyheart.
PalauiFabrepreservedaclearimageoftheworldbeforetheSpanishCivilWar,aworldview16or17yearsold,whichhekeptdeepinsideofhim.PalauiFabrecouldspeakaseasilyaboutthefirsttalkingpicture,The Love Parade,asthejokesofOttoandFritz,whichhadbeeninfashion60yearsbefore.Despitehisiconoclasticstature,PalauiFabrewaswitnesstothecivilizedcustomsofanillustriousbourgeoisiewhowenttotheTeatreGrectoseeMargaridaXirgu’sMedeaortotheLiceutoseetheRussianBallets,intophatsortrilbysandblack-and-whitespectatorshoes.TounderstandtheworldofPalauiFabrebetter,IsetupattheLibraryofCataloniatoreadoldcopiesofMirador,andIwoundupspendingmorethanayearthere.
ItwasattheLibraryofCataloniathat,inagreattorrent,allthequestionsIwasnotabletoaskTísnerandBenguerelwhentheywerealiveandweremyfriendsbegantoemerge.WhenIwasatAvui,IusedtocomeacrossthejournalistJosepMariaLladó,withabigcigarinhismouth,completingthewritingofarticlesatthebarLaLlave,asifLaLlavewerethebaroftheAteneu.InthosedaysIthoughtofLladóasasolitaryandanachronisticoldman.ButnowIthinkofhimattheeditor’sdeskofÚltima Hora,andinNicein1945,publishingPer Catalunya (ForCatalonia)withitscoversbyFontseré,ClavéandMartíBas.ItwaswhileattheLibraryofCataloniareadingMirador —andLa Publicitat,La Rambla,L’InstantandÚltima Hora aswell—thatIbegantounderstandthesheerscaleofthedefeatin1939andtheconsequencesthishadonmylifedirectly.
First, the Civil War forced this generation of writerstochanneltheirenergiesintotheserviceofpolitics.Then,afterdefeattoFranco,thegeneration’sbestwerepushedacrosstheborderintopoorhousesandshelters,wheretheywerelockedoutofCataloniaandkeptatbayinfarawaycountries,livinginprecariouscircumstances,withpainfulmemoriesandapoordigestionoftheirinjuries.Someofthesewritersstayedinthesefarawaycountriesforever.Others,likeTísner,wereawayfor25years.WhentheyreturnedtoCatalonia,theyfoundaplacethatwasnothinglikewhattheyhadimaginedinChileorMexico.InEl Poble Català (TheCatalanPeople),TísnerimagineddozensofCatalanexilesinsombrerosandtouristboatsreturningtoBarcelona,whileinanapocryphaleditionofLa Rambla publishedinMay1945whenTísnerwasonlyatthestartofhisexile,hepublishednormsforapplyingforsubsidiesfromtheSpanishRefugeeEvacuationService(SERE)andtheSpanishRepublicanAssistanceCouncil(JARE),twoorganisationsthathelpedtorepatriateexiles,intheexpectationofbeingbackhomesoon.NobodyendedupinprisoninSpainafterreturningfromexile,buteachexilelivedaclimateofconstantintimidationandthreat.WhenCataloniabegantoreviveandwhenallofthereturnedexilesshouldhavebeendedicatingthemselvesfulltilttothereconstructioneffort,theywerenotalwayswellreceived.Theirideas,itturnedout,didnotalwayscorrespondtoreality.
In1966,AmadeuCuitotriedtorevivehisgrandfather’smagazine.ThisishowthePerpignaneditionofMirador,“themagazinethatwillbereadinCatalonia”,wasborn,whichEugeniXammardreamedofasthealternativetoCarlesSentísandIgnasiAgustí’sTele-estel.In1966,itwasimportanttolookforward,withoutthinkingbacktowhathadbeenlost.Nevertheless,likethereturnofwhathadbeenrepressed,thissenseoflosstrickleddownandmadeitswayintothetitlesoftheexiles’books:Abans de l’alba(BeforetheDawn),Homes i coses de la Barcelona d’abans(MenandThingsofOldBarcelona),Abans d’ara(BeforeNow).Before.
Avuiwasfirstpublishedin1976.Iwasaloyalreaderofthenewspaper.Inthosedays,Ispentthesummersatmymother’sboardinghouse,andIwasbored.Intheafternoons,Iwouldlockmyselfinabedroomoftheboardinghouse’sfirstfloorandcutoutarticlesabouttheFreedomMarch,whichhadjustpassedthroughthetownofArbúcies.Avuioftenpublishedinformationontheexileexperience.Thenewspaperwantedtotransmitavisionofcontinuitythroughnewsofreturnedexilesaswellasdeathsofexilesabroad,deathswhichoccurredinsteadydrips,fromtheremotestdaysmagazinesonexilewerefirstdistributedinHavanaandSantiago,inMexicoandParis.TherewasnewsofthedeathofAlexandrePlana,ofPereCorominas,ofAlfonsMaseras,ofJoaquimXirau.ThosedeathsstandoutagainstagloriousimageofPereQuart,atthePriceFestivalofPoetsin1970,recitingversesofCorrandes de l’exili(FolksongsofExile),whichin1940hadcausedMercèRodoredatoexplodeintolaughterandnearlyburstattheseams.ThosedeathsstandoutagainsttheimageofOliver,joininginwiththepeople,challengingthemincrying:“Liberty!Liberty!”Asajournalist,IattendedOliver’sextremelysadburial.Evenbeforedying,in1986,Oliverwasastarwhoselighthaddimmed.Hewasaforgottenandcrankywriterwhopublishedacidic,disillusionedarticlesinamarginalmagazinecalled
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El Llamp(TheLightning).Sincethosedays,Oliver’slighthasnotstoppeddimminguntilalmosttotaldarkness.ImagesofthegloriousreturnofAgustíBartratoElPratAirporthavedisappearedwhileamuchbleakerimageofcustomsandthepoliceinleatherthree-corneredhatshasremained.
AlineconnectsAntoniRoviraiVirgili’sEls darrers dies de la Catalunya republicana(TheLastYearsofRepublicanCatalonia)toXavierBenguerel’sEls Vençuts(TheDefeated),toMercèRodoreda’sshortstories“Copdelluna”(MoonShadow),“Orleans,3quilòmetres”(Orleans,3Kilometres),and“Paràlisi”(Paralysis),toVicençRieraLlorca’sTots tres surten per l’Ozama(AllThreeComefromOzama),toPereCalders’sL’ombra de l’atzavara(TheShadowoftheAgave).
One of the more extraordinary of the exiled Catalan writers,andatthesametimeoneofthemoreparadigmatic,isJoaquimAmat-Piniella.In1933,whenhewasstillyoung,hehadpublishedabookofhyperrealistportraitsoffriendsfromthecityofManresacalledOmbres al calidoscopi(ShadowsintheKaleidoscope).AttheLibraryofCatalonia,onecopyofthisbook,withadedicationtoJ.V.Foix,ispreserved.TheunravellingofthewarbroughtAmat-PiniellatotheSaint-Cyprienconcentrationcamp,andlater,whenthe109CompagniedeTravailleursEspagnolswasinterceptedbytheGermansatDelle,hewastakentoMauthausen,fromwhichhewasreleasedattheendofthewarand,likesomesortofchrysalis,transformedintothegreatnovelistofK. L. Reich.
ThosesamekeysFrancescTrabalstillcarriedwithhim,inhispocket,inApril1941.AsimilarstorywouldreoccurinCèsar-AugustJordana’sEl món de Joan Ferrer(TheWorldofJoanFerrer).Inoneofthisbook’sfirstchapters,Jordanaspeaksaboutanalarmclockthathecarriedwithhimwhenhewasastudent,doinghismilitaryservice,andwhenhewasanexile,whichnowhadaloosehand.Howcouldhethrowitaway?ThisalarmclockhadbeenwithhimonVecinalStreet,intheLasCondesneighbourhood,inthehouseofhissonJoan.Inarecentarticle,MònicaZgustovaevokesapoignantimageoftheCroatianwriterDubravkaUgrešicinthenovelThe Museum of Unconditional Surrender.AttheBerlinzoo,closetoarefugeeshelter,Ugrešicdescribesamysteriouscollageofitems:achild’sshoe,apipe,acarkey,fourotherrandomkeys—unconnectedobjectsdiscoveredinthestomachofadeadwalrus.ForUgrešic,theseobjectssymbolizedtheexperienceofexile.
InChile,JoaquimJordà,hisfilmcrew,andItravelledasfarasthevillageofLosAndes.WevisitedMapochotrainstationinSantiago,onthetracksoftheoldrouteoftheCatalanAndeangroupofexiles.IthadbeenalongtimesincevillagesinthispartofChilehadaraillineconnectingthem.InMexico,wewenttotheBuenavistaStation,wherethetrainfromVeracruzoncearrived.Nowthatstationisagiantemptyspaceonthepointofdemolition.WevisitedtheCasadelAgrarista,whichwelcomedhundredsofSpanishrefugees.WewalkedthroughtheHipódromoneighbourhood,whereapartmentsandservantquartersarestillvisibleastheyappearedinVicençRieraLlorca’snovelsAmb permís de l’enterramorts(WiththeGravedigger’sPermission)andJoc de xocs(GameofConflict).WewenttotheFrenchCemeterytofindthetombofdramatistandpublisherAvel·líArtísiBalaguer,thefatherofTísner.Inthecemetery’sgreatavenue,manyofthemausoleums,withtheirdoorshalf-open,arelikeapartments,anditisnothardtopicturethewriterPereCaldersimaginingwithalaughtheinhabitantsofshantytownsmakinghomesforthemselvesthere.InthecoursethatbroughtustotheFrenchCemetery,weunravelledthepieceofworldthatCaldershadportrayedin“LaVergedelesvies”(TheVirginoftheRailway):thedisusedrailcrossingoftherailwayleadingtoCuernavaca,theswitchman’sattendantboothand,ontheothersideoftheroad,thechapelandaMcDonald’sadvertisement.WetravelledtoChalmaSanctuary,retracingthepilgrimageofProfessorEnguianoandhispupilsinLluísFerrandePol’sÉrem quatre(WeWereFour):thearrivalinthesanctuarysurroundedbyrock-strewnmountains,thedescentthroughalleywaysfullofstreetstallswherethemultitudeshadgathered,thewreathsofflowersthathadsymbolizedsacrifice,theritualbath,thesuddensicknessinthecaronthereturntrip,andtheperiodofrecoveryamidstvisionsanddeliriums.
The opposite of these desolate fantasies is the idealised CataloniaofJosepCarnerin“RetornaCatalunya”(ReturntoCatalonia):thefierysierra,thegoldenfields,theworldorderedharmoniouslyintheenvironsofthefarmhouse.ThisworldisthebeachesoftheCapdeCreus,whichinthepoetryofRamonXiraubecomesaplaceofrediscoveryandmemorythankstoalanguageXiraurecuperatedfromchildhood.ThisidealisedworldisthedreamstoryofEl món de Joan Ferrer(TheWorldofJoanFerrer)byC.A.Jordana,acounterbalancetothedisenchantment,solitude,andsicknessoftheotherexiles(anappropriatemetaphorforthiswritingwouldbethedrainingofbile).ThisworldisthepassageofcharactersinFrancescTrabal’sTemperatura(Temperature)towardsafabulousworld,throughlakesandvolcanoesplacedscenographicallytoreflectanimpossiblerebirth.DisturbinglyalienisMercèRodoreda’sstoryLa plaça del Diamant(TheTimeoftheDoves),whichsituatesitselfinacitydisfiguredbythebluelightofanti-aircraft,orRodereda’sIncerta glòria(UncertainGlory),inwhichtheauthorrevisits14thAprilwhenTriniMilmanyandSoleràsclimbtheroofoftheUniversityofBarcelonawithaRepublicanflagmadeofremnantsandhandmadepaperstars,inanaïvedreamthatwastobedestroyedontheAragonfront.Thisphantasmagoricalworld,thislostworld,isoneofthemostpowerfulcreationsofCatalanliteratureinthetwentiethcentury.
