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| Octavio Paz Lozano - poet & diplomat |
What do a classically
handsome Mexican poet-diplomat, a wild-haired Russian sculptor, and a
beautiful Russian actress have in common?
Isla Mujeres – of
course.
If you think the
connection is a bit nebulous, well, not really, as a full seven
percent of our blog readers live in Russia, plus there are four
flights a week direct from Moscow to Cancun.
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| Marthy Vargas, Agapito Magana, Pototsky, Natasha |
However,
that's not the only connection. Recently, the well-known Russian
sculptor, Gregory Pototsky, offered the municipality of Isla Mujeres
a bronze bust commemorating the life of the world-renowned Mexican
poet-diplomat, Octavio
Paz Lozano.
Born in 1954 in the Kurgan region of Russia, Gregory Pototsky has more
than 100 bronze portraits (busts) installed in over 30 countries
around the world, including several in the USA, Mexico, China,
Turkey, and two in our home country of Canada.
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| N Duran, M Trejo, Adm.Fierro, M Vargas, A Magana, Pototsky |
His
artistic contribution for Isla Mujeres was installed on a plinth
facing the Caribbean Sea near the attractive Isla 33 Resort &
Villas on the east side of Isla Mujeres. Striking a thoughtful pose,
the bronze head gazes out over the Caribbean Sea, reportedly a huge
source of inspiration for the poet. The inauguration was celebrated
in a spicy fusion of languages: Gregory Pototsky's impassioned
tribute to Mexico and Octavio Paz was translated into English by the
actress Natasha, and replied to in Spanish by our Municipal
Presidente, Agapito Magaňa
Sanchez. It was a bit confusing, but everyone got the gist of the
sentiments.
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| Octavio Paz gazing out over the Caribbean Sea |
Octavio
Paz, on the other hand, was born in 1914 in a suburb of Mexico City and passed away at the age of 84 in the same city. He entered the
Mexican Diplomatic Service in 1945. During his career as a diplomat, he was stationed in exotic locations including Paris, France, Tokyo, Japan, and Geneva, Switzerland, all the while continuing to publish
his poems and essays. In 1962, he was named as Mexico's ambassador to
India.
Fervent
about human rights and openly critical of the then-governing party
of Mexico, Octavio Paz is considered to be one of the most
influential writers of the twentieth century and the greatest
Hispanic poet of all time. In 1990, he was awarded the Nobel Prize
for Literature: "By
a passionate writing with wide horizons, characterized by sensory
intelligence and humanistic integrity."
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| Gregory Pototsky, Agapito Magana, Marthy Vargas de Magana |
Which
got me to wondering about the real Octavio Paz. His biography page
on Wikipedia dishes out the dry-as-dust details: born, lived,
married, worked and died. Yawn!
But what of the flesh and
blood man? Did he like to dance? Was he passionate about good food, red wine, and expensive tequila? Well-educated and well-travelled, he would have been an entertaining dinner guest, or perhaps a romantic entanglement for well-to-do socialites. Those are
the stories that would be fun to read. This could require further
research.
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| Jose Cauich, Nico's Restaurante |
But
back to the present day. As the hot afternoon sun started its slide
into early evening, the bust was unveiled with a flourish of cloth and
enthusiastic clapping.
Then two tray loads of wine - compliments of Joe
Mendez of Isla 33 Resort & Villas - were delivered to the
assembled guests by employees of Nico's Restaurante, Jose Cauich and
Juan-Jose Pech.
Salud: Octavio Paz, Gregory Pototsky, and the
citizens of Isla Mujeres.
Next
time you meander along the edge of the turquoise sea, take a minute to
enjoy the new statue and think of the Isla Mujeres Mexican-Russian
Connection.
(A special thank you to Ruben Perez, the Director of Culture on Isla Mujeres, for informing us about the event.)
(A special thank you to Ruben Perez, the Director of Culture on Isla Mujeres, for informing us about the event.)
Hasta luego, Lynda, Lawrie, Thomas, and Sparky
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