Jocs de nens (translatable as 'child's play' in English) is an exhibition comprising work by Formentera's collective of artisan workers and two local groups in support of artisanry, Associació Formentera per l'Artesania and Associació Artesans Fira de la Mola. The group effort is on public display through 20 October in the exhibition hall of the Centre Antoni Tur Gabrielet.
The pieces that make up the exhibition come from 17 different local craftmakers, including jewellers Xènia, Tito Solari, Lorenzo Pepe, Otis, Neus Betrau and Flor Mauger; clothing makers Simona Colzi, Tete Silbera and Carola Yuste; and craftswoman Olga López, whose textile pieces are all made in situ in her period studio. Paintings from Fran Lucas, Jordi Torrents and Oriol Moragrega are displayed next to glasswork pieces from María Sol and Gennaro Pepe, and the sculpted work of Enric Rissech is contrasted alongside handmade brainteasers made by Sergio Guzmán.
The common thread that links the different pieces? «Each one was handmade by an inner child. There is fantasy present in all of them». So explains participating artist Olga López. The exhibition can be visited 10:30 am-2 pm and 5:30-8:30pm, Monday through Saturday.
In a press conference held earlier today, representatives of the Formentera Council’s office of sport gave residents advance warning about the excitement set to sweep through the town of Es Pujols this Saturday: the third annual Triatló Illa de Formentera, the island’s own triathlon. As councillor of sport Jordi Vidal reported, the event dovetails with this month’s Descobreix Formentera a l’octubre (Discover Formentera in October) publicity campaign, which aims to promote a different, active brand of tourism. «What we want», explained Vidal, «is for Formentera’s visitors to enjoy everything the island has to offer in the low season too – both May and October».
Seeking out new visitors, today through Saturday, 2 October, Formentera will be present at the tourism and travel industry trade show IFTM Topresa in Paris. The local tourism advisory board's chief of staff, Carlos Bernús, is personally attending the trade show in an attempt to carve out a share of today's market of young French travellers, pointing out: «These are people whose grandparents and parents know about Formentera. Now we'd like to see upcoming generations getting interested in the island as a destination location too». This on the heels of a summer season when information points around the island logged increases in French visitors to the pitiusa menor.
In response to the positive reaction of tourists and residents to this summer’s opening of the es Pi des Català tower to visits, the office of patrimony of the Formentera Council has decided to extend public opening hours for the landmark through the autumn and winter months. Hence, CiF councillor of patrimony Susana Labrador related that from this weekend, the visiting hours at la torre des Pi des Català will be every Saturday, 10 am to 1 pm.
El secuestro de la bankera ('The kidnapping of the banker', in Castilian Spanish) unclothes the ruthlessness of the rich and powerful, always a trick up their sleeve to get through adversity unscathed. The production recounts the story of a botched effort by two crooks —more naïve than meets the eye— to kidnap a woman herself more ruthless and clever than her captors could have reckoned. With generous layers of comic satire, dramaturge Dario Fo tailors his acerbic humour at audiences apt to discern critiques of society and politics. The show —adapted in Castilian by Carla Matteini and directed by Esteve Ferrer— is put on by Suripanta, a company of seven whose actors strive to get the people of Formentera talking and laughing.