Directed by: José Luis González Macías and Lía Peinador
‘Men wanted for hazardous journey. Low wages, bitter cold, long hours of complete darkness. Constant danger. Safe return doubtful. Honour and recognition in event of success.’ We are embarking on our journey to an imprecise destination with this blunt yet honest invitation attributed to the explorer Ernest Shackleton to recruit the crew for his legendary expedition to Antarctica.
Literature, curiosity and emotion will be our baggage on this voyage. We will embrace drifting and failure. We will make uncertainty our ally because if we accept it, we cannot do absolutely anything against its affronts or whims. We will camouflage ourselves in the thin line of boundaries and cross imaginary borders, directionless. We will walk in the shadow of thresholds. We’ll keep our senses alert. We’ll search for all types of traces. We’ll look for empty frames. We’ll invent the great beyond and be happy in our folly.
In this Universidad Popular course, we’ll turn into archaeologists of the everyday and adventurers of the infra-ordinary to set sail towards that unknown place where beyond falls the sea.
Lía Peinador is a publisher and translator and the head of Ediciones Menguantes (menguantes.com). She has taught several workshops on sound and independent publishing.
José Luis González Macías is a writer, designer, publisher and fan of maps since he was a boy. His book Breve Atlas de los Faros del Fin del Mundo [Brief Atlas of the Lighthouses of the World], which has been translated into more than fifteen languages, won the National Award for Best Edited Book in 2021.
The CA2M Museum offers a line of training activities in contemporary art and thinking framed within the tradition of the Universidad Popular, or adult education. These classes address some of the fundamental approaches to understanding and interpreting art today. They are divided into two parts: the first one consists of a guest speaker outlining a topic, while the second one is an open debate where the audience can have the floor. This organisation may shift into more experimental formats depending on the topic of each session.
PROGRAMME
23 April THE INACCESSIBLE POLE / Lía Peinador and González Macías
30 April ‘TO DIE WOULD BE AN AWFULLY BIG ADVENTURE’: INVENTING THE GREAT BEYOND / Sabina Urraca
7 May AN EMPTY FRAME / Raúl Alaejos and Hilo Moreno
14 May BORDERS / Paula Ducay and Inés García (Punzadas Sonoras)
21 May PARALLEL AND TEMPORARY LOST AND FOUND OFFICE (PTLFO) / Carolina Arabia
You must have attended four of the sessions to receive accreditation of the course upon request.
Registration open for the activity AN EMPTY FRAME. THE LIMITS OF REPRESENTATION (Until 7 May)
In this Universidad Popular course, we’ll turn into archaeologists of the everyday and adventurers of the infra-ordinary to set sail towards that unknown place where beyond falls the sea.

Picture: Ediciones Menguantes