Eduardo González
The Cultural Center of Spain in Montevideo (CCE Montevideo), linked to the network of cultural centers of the Spanish Agency of International Cooperation for Development (AECID), celebrated its twentieth anniversary this November.
The CCE Montevideo is part of the thirteen Cultural Centers of Spain (CCE) and the five Associated Cultural Centers linked to the AECID, present in 16 countries (fifteen in the American continent and one more in Equatorial Guinea) and which receive around one million visitors a year. According to the agency, the activities of these centers promote, “with the involvement of institutions and groups in each country, cultural diversity, the protection of human rights, sensitivity to environmental or gender issues, the fight against poverty and sustainable human development”.
In these two decades, as AECID recalled in a press release, the CCE Montevideo has become a cultural reference, “supporting local initiatives, encouraging experimentation, contemporary creation and new artistic languages and offering a diverse and accessible program that covers all areas of art and reflection”.
Located in the heart of the Old City, the CCE Montevideo occupies an emblematic 1921 building, the former Ferretería Mojana, a valuable cultural heritage of the country that was declared a National Historic Monument in 1996. Thanks to the intervention of architect Rafael Lorente, the building has been respectfully adapted for cultural use, preserving all its history. The presence of the CCE in this neighborhood of Montevideo, where important historic buildings are located, has reinforced the cultural component of the area, where art galleries, bookstores, museums and other cultural centers are located.
The CCE has a modern media library with more than 3,000 members and an extensive collection of more than 24,000 items in various formats, including books, magazines, films, records and Ibero-American bibliographic collections. In 2023, the media library has been strengthened with the addition of a comic library and a toy library service. The CCE has also launched an urban organic vegetable garden, the first of its kind in a cultural space in Montevideo, and a Espacio Colab, designed for young people who need to work together. The CCE has also promoted culture for the elderly.
Over the years, the CCE has become a cultural reference in Montevideo and has been able to adapt to governmental and cultural changes, collaborating closely with new cultural policies and developing successful events such as the Night of the Bookstores in Uruguay, the International Festival of Contemporary Dance of Uruguay (FIDCU) or the International Festival of Performing Arts (FIDAE). In addition, the CCE Montevideo is a reference space for the visual arts.
