A Cyclist with a Gun. Performative Lecture with Gabriel Ventura

Based on a selection of news stories from different media outlets and historical periods, Gabriel Ventura traces a journey through unusual and mundane events that have taken place in Girona over the last two centuries.

Gabriel Ventura (Granollers, 1988) is a poet whose work expands into other disciplines such as performance, chronicle writing, cinema, and research. Among his latest publications are W (2017; expanded reissue, 2019), Apunts per a un incendi dels ulls (2020) —a poetry collection that gave its title to an exhibition at MACBA— and La nit portuguesa (2021), a shooting chronicle of Liberté, a film by Albert Serra. He is also the author of Passió i cartografia per a un incendi dels ulls, a text-action performed at MACBA in 2022.

He frequently collaborates with artist Rosa Tharrats, with whom he co-directed the short films Els miracles del mestre Cabestany (2023) and El riu era verd i blau i groc (2024), presented at Manifesta 15 and Márgenes Festival. He has received the Montserrat Roig grant and has participated in several literary residencies, including Residència Finestres. His works have been presented at festivals and venues such as Eufònic, Fundació Brossa, Bombon Projects, Fundació Tàpies, Festival Eñe, Festival Veu, Barcelona Poesia, and Festival Poesia i +, among others. His poems have been translated into English, French, Greek, Dutch, Turkish, and Portuguese. He is currently a lecturer at BAU and is working on an opera (for which he wrote the libretto) and on a new essay.

Image: Narcís Sans Prats (1968)