Friday, March 19. 1965
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University Daily Kansan
Spanish Professor Reveals Spirit of Homeland
Page 5
Bv Lacv Banks
A painting was used by a visiting Spanish professor last evening to lecture about the spirit of Spain.
Guillermo Diez-Plaja, from Barcelona and a visiting professor at the University of New York in Buffalo, referred to "Maids of Honor" by Diego Rodriguez Velazquez as one of the greatest realistic paintings ever. Velazquez, 17th century Spanish painter, finished the work in 1556.
Speaking to about 110 people, Prof. Diez-Plaja described the characters of the picture projected on a screen from a color slide.
The painting shows Velazquez making a portrait of the king and queen of Spain; they were reflected in a mirror behind Valezquez. The painting included the queen's maids of honor.
"THIS PICTURE BEGUILES the true relations that existed between the king and queen at that time," Prof. Diez-Plaja said. "They were rarely seen together.
"The characters in the play, however," he continued, "seemingly possess a pathetic Castillian fervor. Castilla (a Spanish province) was the
cradle of many famous Spanish writers of sentimental fervor. The famous religious 'mystical' writers came from here," Prof. Diez-Plaja said.
Prof. Diez-Plaja then explained the lives of the other characters and their influence on the Spanish history.
"My first book was completed when I was 19." Prof. Diez-Plaia said in an interview preceding his speech. "Since, I have written on the average of two works a year. The writings naturally concern literature, theater and esthetical problems of art."
Prof. Diez-Plaja is the director of the Barcelona Theatrical Institute, and the foreign editor of a KU magazine, "Modern Drama." He is the author of over 50 works including essays, criticisms and textbooks..
MANY OF HIS books have also sold in South America, he said. "The majority of my works are didactic," he said. "My main preoccupation is to explain esthetical problems to the public; I am fundamentally an educator."
Prof. Diez-Flaja has been at the University of New York since last
September. He returns to Barcelona this May. At NYU, he is teaching literature courses to doctorate candidates.
"The system of work in your graduate school here is very different from that of home," he said. "Here the average graduate course is small, the students are closer to the professors and the professors know the students better."
The United States offers a very interesting educational picture for investigators and teachers, Prof. Diez-Plaja continued. "I always tell my students that in order to understand Spanish, they have to learn English," he said.
AS FAR AS high school students are concerned, he believes that the American student has better advantages in the long run. He said the
Spanish students know more facts than American students at the same stage, but American students know more about the practical application of education.
The universities in America, with their massive campuses, the visiting professor continued, are isolated entities. In Barcelona, the students live in the cities among families. Campuses are more conducive for studying and they are educational instruments in themselves for communal living. Prof. Diez-Plaja said.
As for the Spanish theaters of today, Prof. Diez-Plaja said that there are two types of theaters in Spain—one for the aristocratic minorities and one for all classes of people.
He said that in Barcelona there are 22 theaters that present plays twice
a day; one in the day, the other at night.
THE HIGH-CLASS theaters are universal in their production appeal, Prof. Diez-Plaja said. They give productions from all over the world and by such authors as Ibsen, Unesco and Tennessee Williams.
"Many of the popular theater runs plays for 100 days sometimes," he continued. "Here in America, some shows on Broadway run for years. Of course, the populations of the cities affect this. Barcelona has two million citizens; New York has eight million."
The theater in Spain is more popular than in any other European country, Prof. Diez-Plaja said. However, nationally, it comes third place to football and the movie theater, he concluded.
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