THE UNIVERSE OF CARTONERO BOOKS – AVEIRO

“THE UNIVERSE OF CARTONERO BOOKS” – AVEIRO

The Fanzineteca de Aveiro hosts a literary exhibition of “cartonero” books, currently touring Portugal.

This is a collection of handmade books from around the world that carry messages from writers and artists working outside conventional publishing circuits.

Within this set of publications, we find vehicles of political, social, and creative intervention that give voice to those who usually have none. They represent valuable and active statements by their creators and open doors to the democratization of writing and publishing.

Originating in South America during times of social upheaval and within vulnerable social groups, these initiatives found in this medium a way to improve their skills through writing and graphic creation. These editorial proposals arise from precarious circumstances but give their creators a new personal and creative dimension.

This approach also has an important ecological dimension, as it discovers a way to value common materials like cardboard, giving them a new life cycle with added artistic and economic value.

This initiative aligns with the philosophy of the Fanzineteca de Aveiro, sharing an alternative and irreverent editorial attitude that Cartonero Books have in common with Fanzines.

PROGRAM:

1 – Exhibition “The Universe of Cartonero Books”, Dates: from October 10 to November 17 (Mon – Fri: 8:30 AM – 4:30 PM), Location: Fanzineteca of Aveiro – Library of José Estêvão Secondary School

2 – Presentation of the Documentary «Carretera Cartonera» by Marta Mancusi and Anna Trento, with online comments by Gaudêncio Gaudério (Vento Norte Cartonero Publisher) Date: Wednesday, October 18, from 2:20 PM to 4:45 PM, Location: Multipurpose Amphitheater of José Estêvão Secondary School

3 – Workshop for making Cartonero Books, Date: Wednesday, October 25, at 2:20 PM (For Secondary School students from the Visual Arts course.) Location: José Estêvão Secondary School

4 – Poetry Recital Date: Saturday, October 28, at 4:00 PM, Location: Café Amizade – Aveiro

5 – Mini-Exhibition “The Universe of Cartonero Books”, Dates: from October 10 to November 17 (Tue – Sat: 11:30 AM – 1:00 AM / Sun: 4:30 PM – 1:00 AM) | Aveiro, Location: Café Amizade

Location: Fanzineteca de Aveiro / Library of José Estêvão Secondary School
E-mail: fanzinetecadeaveiro@fanzine.pt
Dates: October 10 to November 17, 2023 (Soft opening on October 10 at 3:00 PM)

Curatorship: Vento Norte Cartonero
Local Organization: Fanzineteca of Aveiro / UV Editions / Miguel Correia
National Organization: CES – Centre for Social Studies of the University of Coimbra / Animar
Partners: José Estêvão Schools Group / National Arts Plan / Fanzine Ultra Violenta / Café Amizade

CONTEXT

“The story of cartonera publishers begins with a touch of tragic fable.
Once upon a time, there was a country below the famous Equator line, plunged into yet another of its habitual cyclical crises.
It is in this context that the world’s first cartonera publisher emerged; today, it is estimated that more than 150 operate across the globe. Created by small groups of people connected to literary and cultural production, and in some cases by collectives with political and social concerns, cartonera publishers often function as interventionist initiatives to give voice and language to those who have long been silenced, and to make writing and reading practices more present in everyday life — especially among groups historically marginalized from literate culture.”
It can be said that the originality of the cartonero book lies in the material used for the covers and the artistic work they receive, because by employing cardboard (cartón in Spanish), the typical fate of this material in consumer society — ending up in landfills or recycling companies — is reversed through creativity, transforming it into part of an object that aims to be integrated under a different logic within the realm of symbolic goods.
In this sense, the choice of cardboard is linked to an act of ecological awareness in today’s struggle for the planet’s sustainability—a gesture that is also, in itself, a political stance.
Additionally, the result of the artistic interventions on the covers, using different techniques, gives the cartonero book a certain “aura,” as each copy becomes unique due to its singularity.
The exhibition presented here is just a small sample of the diverse universe of cartonero books. Visitors will be able to see what publishers from various countries in Latin America, Europe, and Africa produce, and the unique way they create their books. The guiding spirit is to enable the Portuguese {and Aveiro} public to discover this publishing approach, which was born out of hardship and has now spread across different remote regions of the world.

[Excertos de um texto de Gaudêncio Gaudério, Vento Norte Cartonero]

DETAILS

Publishers: 69
Countries: 18 Books: 194
Plus 25 additional books created in the territories where the exhibition traveled.

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REPRESENTED PUBLISHERS

ARGENTINA

Cartonera Amarillo Rojo y Azul
Year founded: 2012 City: Córdoba (Argentina)

Cieneguita Cartonera
Year founded: 2011City: La Cieneguita (Argentina)

Corazón Reciclado
Year founded: 2017 City: Necochea (Argentina)

Editorial Cuenteros Verseros y Poetas
Year founded: 2010 City: Florencio Varela Penitentiary (Argentina)

Editorial Municipal Chivilcoy
Year founded: 2016 City: Chivilcoy (Argentina)

Eloisa Cartonera
Year founded: 2003 City: Buenos Aires (Argentina)

El Piche Cartonero
Year founded: — City: Trelew (Argentina) Various authors: Carpinteras

BOLIVIA

4Nombres Cartonera
Year founded: 2014 City: Sucre (Bolivia)

BRAZIL

Butecanis Editora Cabocla
Year founded: 2013 City: Camboriú (Brazil)

Candeeiro Cartonera
Year founded: 2015 City: Caruaru (Brazil)

Castelar Cartonera
Year founded: 2021 City: Arcoverde (Brazil)

Catapoesia
Year founded: 2009 City: Serra Negra (Brazil)

Chita Cartonera
Year founded: 2017 City: Aracaju (Brazil)

Clãdestina Cartonera
Year founded: 2015 City: Belo Horizonte (Brazil)

Dulcineia Catadora
Year founded: 2007 City: São Paulo (Brazil)

Eureka Cartonera
Year founded: 2020 City: Igatu (Brazil)

Flora Cartonera (minimum daily)
Year founded: 2014 City: São Paulo (Brazil)

Licuri Livros Artesanais
Year founded: 2019 City: Salvador (Brazil)

Maria Preta Cartonera
Year founded: 2019 City: Ladário (Brazil)

Mariposa Cartonera
Year founded: 2013 City: Recife (Brazil)

Va Cartonera
Year founded: 2018 City: São Paulo (Brazil)

Vento Norte Cartonero
Year founded: 2014 City: Santa Maria (Brazil)

Voz Cartonera
Year founded: 2017 City: São José dos Pinhais (Brazil)

Yiyi Jambo
Year founded: 2007 City: Ponta Porã (Brazil)

COLOMBIA

Amapola Cartonera
Year founded: 2012 City: Bogotá (Colombia)

La Maestra Cartonera
Year founded: 2010 City: Bogotá (Colombia)

COSTA RICA

CartoneraTica
Year founded: 2010 City: San José (Costa Rica)

CHILE

Editorial Cayó La Teja
Year founded: 2015 City: Santiago (Chile)

Isi Cartonera
Year founded: 2012 City: Santiago (Chile)

La Grullita Cartonera
Year founded: 2015 City: Santiago (Chile)

La Joyita Cartonera
Year founded: 2014 City: Santiago (Chile)

La Vieja Sapa Cartonera
Year founded: 2012 City: Santiago (Chile)

Loquita Cartonera
Year founded: 2014 City: Santiago (Chile)

Maniobra Cartonera
Year founded: 2021 City: Melipilla (Chile)

Olga Cartonera
Year founded: 2012 City: Santiago (Chile)

Publicaciones Marca Chancho
Year founded: 2017 City: Santiago (Chile)

ECUADOR

Liberta Cartonera
Year founded: 2020 City: Quito (Ecuador)

SPAIN

Astromántica Cartoneira
Year founded: 2014 City: Vigo (Spain)

Cartonera del Escorpión Azul
Year founded: 2019 City: Madrid (Spain)

Cartonera Island
Year founded: 2012 City: La Laguna / Tenerife (Spain)

Ediciones Karakarton
Year founded: 2012 City: Barcelona (Spain)

Meninas Cartoneras
Year founded: 2009 City: Madrid (Spain)

Nomelibro Nilointento Cartonera
Year founded: 2018 City: Vigo (Spain)

Pensaré Cartoneras
Year founded: 2013 City: Valencia (Spain)

UNITED STATES

Aquifer Cartonera
Year founded: 2020 City: San Marcos (United States)

Memphis Cartonera
Year founded: 2016 City: Memphis (United States)

FRANCE

La Marge
Year founded: 2014 City: Angers (France)

GUATEMALA

Proyecto Editorial Los Zopilotes
Year founded: 2014 City: Antigua (Guatemala)

ITALY

Pangea Cartonera
Year founded: 2016 City: Padova (Italy)

MEXICO

Cartopirata Editorial
Year founded: 2014 City: Cuernavaca (Mexico)

Kodama Cartonera
Year founded: 2010 City: Tijuana (Mexico)

La Biznaga Cartonera
Year founded: 2013 City: Cajeme (Mexico)

La Cartonera
Year founded: 2008 City: Cuernavaca (Mexico)

La Regia Cartonera
Year founded: 2009 City: Monterrey (Mexico)

La Rueda Cartonera
Year founded: 2009 City: Xalisco (Mexico)

Pachuk Cartonera Editorial
Year founded: 2014 City: Pachuca (Mexico)

Viento Cartonero
Year founded: 2013 City: Ecatepec de Morelos (Mexico)

PANAMA

Ediciones Pelo Malo (Cartonera)
Year founded: 2014 City: Ciudad de Panamá (Panama)

PERU

Amaru Cartonera
Year founded: 2013 City: Lima (Peru)

El Silencio Cartonera
Year founded: 2021 City: Lima (Peru)

Puriq Cartonera
Year founded: 2021 City: Ayacucho (Peru)

Sancho Cartonero
Year founded: 2021 City: Lima (Peru)

Viringo Cartonero
Year founded: 2013 City: Lima (Peru)

PUERTO RICO

Coqui Cartonero Editorial
Year founded: 2015 City: San Juan (Puerto Rico)

PORTUGAL

Biblioteca Clandestina Cartonera
Year founded: 2022 City: Algarve (Portugal)

Eva Cartonera
Year founded: 2019 City: Barreiro (Portugal)

Gongon Cartonera
Year founded: 2022 City: Lisboa (Portugal)

Pachamama Cartonera
Year founded: 2021 City: Lisboa (Portugal)

VENEZUELA

Dirtsa Cartonera
Year founded: 2014 City: Maracay (Venezuela)

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