“The Art of Memory” is the second episode of Crónicas Interplanetarios, a podcast by El Espectador in alliance with Grupo Planeta, Akorde Media and Radiola Estudio. This chapter is a story about magic, the connection with our dreams and language as the great architect of the universe. The guest author is Álvaro Robledo, whose most recent book is “Viejos pactos”.
The anecdote tells that the lyrical poet Simónides de Ceos was in Scopas’s abode singing a praise to the famous sculptor and architect and in the middle of his parliament he included Castor and Pollux. Jealous, Scopas decided that he would only pay him half of the poem, as he had taken care of the two twin sons of Zeus and symbols of brotherly love. Suddenly, Simonides was knocked on the door and when he left, he saw the two brothers: just when he was outdoors the building collapsed, destroying everything.
This little anecdote serves to introduce The Art of Memory , the second episode of Interplanetary Chronicles, a podcast by El Espectador in alliance with Grupo Planeta, Akorde Media and Radiola Estudio, which seeks, through reading and books, topics from conversation that broaden the knowledge around them.
The mnemonic, or art of memory, was born when Simónides had to reconstruct for the relatives the organization of the table at which the diners were seated, including Scopas, in order to recognize their bodies.
Throughout various historical periods, characters such as Giulio Camillo, Giordano Bruno, Madame Blavatsky, Aby Warburg or Francis B. Yates have written and thought about our memory as a huge palace that would correspond to the universe and would be made up of rooms that we can visit. if we have a provision for it.
The writer Álvaro Robledo, who has just published his book Viejos pactos , on the Seix Barral label, has taken some of these ideas to compose the most beautiful and intense of his books: confined to a natural setting in northern Colombia, when he declared the first quarantine, and with a personal crisis in tow, he began to visit the rooms of his life to put into practice all those theories that connect us with the depths of our being.
In the second episode of Interplanetary Chronicles, a story about magic, the connection with our dreams and language as the great architect of the universe:
We invite you to listen to Why is Colombia a racist country ?, the first episode of Interplanetary Chronicles on Spotify or on your favorite podcast platform.
