Twenty years of Arcadia, the publishing house that makes us think in Catalan

BarcelonaIt often happens that good ideas gain strength from unexpected coincidences and complicities. This was the case with Arcadia, which was born in 2003 thanks to the chemistry between two demanding, curious, and discerning editors and a bookseller. The editors were Montse Ingla (Barcelona, ​​1960) and Antoni Munné (Barcelona, ​​1954). The bookseller, Antonio Ramírez (Medellín, 1960), from La Central"We realized we shared very diverse interests and that we wanted to try our luck with a personal publishing project at the pace our jobs allowed," they explain. Munné had held management positions at Planeta and Santillana—overseeing labels such as Alfaguara, Taurus, and Aguilar—and Ingla was literary director of Cruïlla, which published around 100 new books annually specializing in children and young adult literature. Ramírez asked them to edit the first issue of a thought journal from La Central: "There were articles by Zygmunt Bauman, Roberto Calasso, Jordi Llovet, Natalia Ginzburg and Umberto Eco, among others."

Many of them would end up being part of the Arcadia catalogue, which published the first book at the end of 2004. It was The idea of Europe, by George Steiner. "We had to reprint the book because we messed up the cover," they recall. "Despite initial financial difficulties, The idea of Europe It was selling very well." The work obligations of the trio of founders of Arcadia meant that it took them almost a year to continue the project. The second title was as paradigmatic as the first: the exquisite Aphorisms of Zürau, of Franz Kafka, translated by Feliu Formosa, and with an afterword by Roberto Calasso. The incorporation of Zygmunt Bauman in 2006 with Trust and fear in the city It further consolidated Arcadia's intellectual reach. But the adventure had just begun. "In this first stage, when we weren't yet dedicated full-time to publishing, we incorporated authors such as Tzvetan Todorov, Giorgio Agamben, Norman Manea, and Martha C. Nussbaum," they comment. Their goal was "to publish essays by people who think for themselves," they assert, and Munné adds: "We have been quite opposed to academic books, and time has proven us right with our choice of names."

A leap forward

In 2011, when Antonio Ramírez left the project—"Although he has always continued to support us," they point out—Arcadia's catalog only contained translations. "At that time, there were hardly any essays written in Catalan," they say. After helping to revitalize the translated offering—with essential titles such as The poetry of thought, of George Steiner–, publishers began to show interest in doing a similar exercise with local production. The first Catalan they brought on was Jordi Llovet, with Melancholy and wisdom (2013). Two years later, the publisher took a leap forward thanks to the excellent reception ofUnderstanding the world, in which Carles Capdevila collected eleven interviews with thinkers such as John Gray, Judith Butler, Alain Touraine and Ágnes Heller, made for the newspaper ARA. "My friendship with Carlos was very important for us," they admit. "It was a touching, tender, and difficult experience." Capdevila's latest book, The life I learn, published months before his death, became the best-selling non-fiction book of that Sant Jordi. "That year alone, it surpassed 40,000 copies, a very significant figure for a company like ours," they say. In parallel with Capdevila's achievements, Arcadia also published a book that was very well received by readers. Out of class, by Marina Garcés, and The will to understand, by Xavier Antich.

Since 2013, both Ingla and Munné have dedicated themselves fully to the publishing house. "We've invested a lot of time and effort, and it's been a very stimulating adventure," they say. In these 20 years, in addition to having published 165 books, including titles by Susan Sontag, Richard Sennett and Josep Fontana, have co-edited collections with the Macba and La Virreina Centro de la Imagen; they have promoted the ambitious publishing and museum project of Juana Masó about Francesc Tosquelles, and have curated an extensive series of talks at La Pedrera, which has featured speakers such as Julian Barnes, John Eliot Gardiner, Siri Hustvedt, Zadie Smith and Tom Wolfe. They have also tried their hand at a collection of children's literature, My Arcadia, which was not consolidated. However, they have been able to broaden the boundaries of written thought in Catalan thanks to another collection, Drift, which premiered in 2018 with The eye and the razor, ofIngrid Guardiola, and which already has a dozen titles by authors such as Lluís Calvo, Blanca Luz Vidal and Adrià Pujol Cruells.

Technology, ecofeminism, and memory

"Over the years, we have combined books from a broad ideological spectrum, which has grown thanks to the incorporation of new themes as they have entered the social debate," they add. They mention reflections on technology, posthumanism, ecofeminism, and degrowth. They have also dared to publish highly unique titles, such as: Live like the birds, by Vinciane Despret (2021), focused on the forms of territorial occupation and the coexistence of birds. "The essay is more important than ever in a world where networks have caused the context in which knowledge is given to be lost," the editors affirm. "Our catalogue reclaims context." For some time now, Ingla and Munné have been exploring a new path: memory. "In 2025 we will publish a large correspondence, that of Hannah Arendt and Günther Anders, and also Distant memory, by Colm Tóibín, which includes texts about distant memories and more recent ones, such as the one about the testicular cancer he overcame."

In 2019, aware that they would not be able to captain Arcadia forever, the editors met with Jaume Roures to "propose the sale of Folch, Jaume Roures and Tatxo Benet, he would keep 80% of the publishing house. At that time, Suma had just refloated Navona. It is a lot of merit."

Three years later, Arcadia was integrated into the group Abacus Future, which had just acquired all the literary imprints of the Enciclopedia group (Universo, La Galera, Elastic Books, Rata, Ediciones Invisibles, Bridge, and Catedral), to which were added Abacus's own imprints (Ara Llibres, Amsterdam, La Casa de los Clásicos - Bernat Médico, and Inuk). "Right now, while the group's new headquarters are under construction, we don't have a permanent location, but we're ready to move to Peu de la Creu Street," they explain. When they do, Arcadia will enter a new phase. "We will continue to lead the project intellectually, but the executive editor will be Maria Nadal, and communications will be handled by Belén Feduchi," they say. "The job of a good editor is that of a confessor, because what you and the author say stays within your own home," comment Antoni Munné and Montse Ingla. "They are also a companion, just as Kurt Wolff was for Kafka. You have to have a great deal of trust and complicity with an author."

PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE OF THE PUBLISHING HOUSE

The writer and critic George Steiner (1928-2020) was associated with Arcadia from the publisher's first title. In addition to The idea of Europe You can read seven other titles from his prolific work, including The poetry of thought (2012) and Erratum (2018).

The growing power of the economy and the relentless force of technology have been two decisive factors in the disregard for the humanities in contemporary society. In this key essay, Martha C. Nussbaum takes a stand in favor of active, competent, and critical thinking.

What keeps us glued to our screens all day? What do social media turn us into: "citizens for change" or rather, monetized products that must always be displayed? Ingrid Guardiola raises this and many other questions in an essential text.

Thanks to Joana Masó, the figure of Francisco Tosquelles (1912-1994) went from obscurity to progressive and international recognition. The psychiatrist has inspired an ambitious essay—translated into several languages—and several exhibitions.

This April, veteran biologist Jaume Terradas debuts in Arcadia with an essay that focuses on the human adventure of making its way to Earth: the exploratory and scientific curiosity of some has been as important as the greed of others, which has caused serious alterations in the biosphere and ecosystems, in some cases and