Joaquín Gutiérrez
Joaquín Gutiérrez is the author of Cocorí, Puerto Limón, Manglar, and Murámonos, Federico, which earned him the Premio Nacional Aquileo J. Echevvería in 1973. He writes short stories, novels, poems, and journalistic articles. His short story in Costa Rica: A Traveler’s Literary Companion, “A Leaf of Air,” is the longest in the collection, though the […]
Mario González Feo
Mario González Feo, reporter and columnist, is the author of Nihil, Nihil II, and María de la soledad. His story “Bucho Vargas, Healer and Medicine Man” is the recollection of the speaker, who, as a child, witnessed the arrival of a medicine man. Bucho Vargas arrived “carrying an immense umbrella, since it was raining…He had […]
Carlos Luis Fallas
Carlos Luis Fallas is the author of Mamita Yunai, Gentes y gentecillas, and Mi Madrina and the winner of the Premio Nacional de Cultura Magón in 1965, the year of his passing. Fallas, who worked on the United Fruit Company’s banana plantations and organized workers there, is known for his championing of the working class. […]
Fernando Durán Ayanegui
Monday, Monday–can’t trust that day. In Fernando Durán Ayanegui’s story “Monday,” the day of the week is not necessarily relevant. The story simply takes place on a normal day that is just like any other: Adán goes to work at the garage, the “dirty shed that rose beneath a rusty old zinc roof on a […]
Quince Duncan
The Montezuma Oropendola is a Central American bird in the Icteridae family (along with blackbirds, orioles, and meadowlarks) and named for the Aztec emperor Moctezuma II. Quince Duncan’s story, “The Oropéndolas,” is a short, sad, and beautiful tale of these birds, who “always fly in the protection of the gods. Mornings, they streak across the […]
“She Wore a Bikini”
Alfonso Chase has a second story in the collection Costa Rica: A Traveler’s Literary Companion. “She Wore a Bikini” tells the tale of the missing Adelita González, who may or may not have been wearing a bikini when she was last seen on the beach of Costa Rica’s southern Pacific coast. The narrator of the […]
Alfonso Chase
Alfonso Chase is a poet, essayist, and fiction writer, as well as a Professor of Literature at the Universided Nacional de Costa Rica. He has edited a two-volume survey of Costa Rican fiction, La narrative contemporanea de Costa Rica, and has authored many works including the novels Los juegos furtivos, Las puertas de la noche, […]
SURFING IS… WITH LARS MERSEBURG
German-born surfer Lars Merseburg would live in the water if he could. “It’s my favorite place,” he says. “I wish I could breathe underwater.” In reality, Merseburg, a former competitive swimmer, splits his time between Montauk, Long Island and New York City, where he runs Imagine Swimming, the school he co-founded with his business partner Casey […]
SURFING IS … WITH GITA DHIR
Raised in Columbia, Maryland by an Indian father and German mother, it’s a surprise that Gita Dhir ever found her way to surfing. Now the sporty, brown-eyed beauty says, “Wherever I can find a wave, if I have a board, I’ll get on it.” Her first attempt at surfing took place in Ocean City, Maryland […]
SURFING IS…WITH CAROLYN DAY
In her mid-twenties, Carolyn Day was pursuing a degree in Clinical Criminology in Montreal, Canada where she co-owned a home brewing store. Then one day, following a major heartbreak, Day – now a stuntwoman based in Los Angeles – woke up and decided to pull the plug on her life as she knew it: she […]
SURFING IS… WITH KURT RIST
Southampton-based surfer Kurt Rist is all about big barrels. During the summer, he runs a surf camp near Water Mill, about 90 miles from New York City. Yet come late fall, the daredevil takes off for northwest Ireland, just in time for the first big swell to hit. His destination of choice is the off-the-beaten […]
SURFING IS…WITH NICK FAIRMAN
Looking for a reprieve from team sports, Florida native Nick Fairman ventured into surfing when he was a teenager. Although raised in Orlando, his love of the ocean didn’t stop at his favorite surf break in New Smyrna Beach. “It’s where I have all my first memories of something so great.” He also traveled to […]
SURFING IS… WITH RICCARDO GHILARDI
Rome-based photographer Riccardo Ghilardi forayed into the world of surfing at a young age, starting in the gentle, relatively flat Mediterranean Sea before venturing far and wide to renowned surf breaks across Australia, New Zealand, Indonesia, Africa and South America. A former fireman in Italy, Ghilardi says he discovered his love of photography through surfing: […]
SURFING IS… WITH THANIYA KEEREEPART
Brooklyn-based surfer Thaniya Keereepart got her first taste of the sport in Morocco during a week-long trip to a tiny town called Tagazhout, which she later learned is one of the top spots to surf in Africa. “I’ve always been fascinated by how surfing intersects between lifestyle, agility, and grace,” says Keereepart, who grew up […]
SURFING IS… WITH EMI KOCH
The 24-year-old California native Emi Koch doesn’t really root herself down physically. “I’m a nomad with an irrational fear of cupboards, closets and chests of drawers,” she says. The young entrepreneur, who started a nonprofit called Beyond the Surface International when she was only 19, first discovered surfing as a toddler. “My father was an ocean […]
SURFING IS… WITH JONNY SWANK
The Canadian-born lover of water Jonny Swank says sand and salt are in his blood. At least that’s what he tells people when they ask about his obsession with water. “Water has, without a doubt, greatly influenced my life’s journey thus far,” says Swank, whose childhood trips to Spain whet his appetite for water sports. […]
SURFING IS… WITH FELIX DESROCHES
The San Francisco-based graphic designer Felix Desroches describes himself as a bit of a “glomad.” Born in Ventura, California, this French Canadian Brit hybrid spent his early years living between Indonesia, Venezuela and Nigeria, followed by stints in Paris, Texas and England, where he studied political science at the University of Warwick. In 2007, he […]
The White-Throated Magpie Jay
Large, loud and gregarious, the White-Throated Magpie Jay is a hard bird to miss. Commonly spotted and often comfortable around people, it is perfectly content perching close to outdoor tables, waiting for an opportunity to steal a few stray crumbs or leftovers. With its dapper blue and white outfit, remarkably long tail, and regal crest […]
Central Creatives Introduces Eduardo Mata Icaza
Name: Eduardo Mata Icaza Where do you live? Where are you from? I live in Marseille, the south of France, I’m from Costa Rica. What is your main artistic practice? Oil painting, drawing and ceramics. Where could a visitor seek art in Costa Rica? Galeria Valanti Where can we find your work? www.eduardomataicaza.com
The Plain Chachalaca
The Plain Chachalaca isn’t exactly the flashiest of birds, but what pizazz it may lack in its plumage is more than made up for by the raucous call from which it gets its name. Most often heard singing from treetops at dawn and dusk, its distinctive cha-cha-lac song has been scientifically categorized as “ear-splitting.” When […]
Bound for Costa Rica With 40 Rolls of Film
Name: Matthias Winkel Where do you live? The beautiful city of Hamburg, Germany. What is your main artistic practice? Film photography. Tell us what brought you to Costa Rica. A friend of mine invited me to Costa Rica, so I made sure to buy myself a ticket. Two weeks before the trip he had to […]
Central Creatives: Photographs from Kathryn Gaitens
This week we were able to catch up with Nosara photographer Kathryn Gaitens, whose thoughtful work explores a range of subjects and style. Name: Kathryn Gaitens Where do you live? I divide my time between Costa Rica and Toronto, Canada. What is your main artistic practice? Contemporary portraiture: expressions of beauty with layers of meaning. The […]
Martin Klimas’ Flower Explosions and Daft Punk Paintings
German photographer Martin Klimas loves to play. I came across his remarkable photos of high speed flower explosions after reading about a former work of his featuring photographs of shattered ceramic figures. For the flower series, Klimas first soaked them in liquid nitrogen before blasting them with an airgun. The result is a burst of […]
Courtesy of Nature
Rather than commission an artist to design a piece for a given museum or gallery, architect Anouk Vogel and landscape artist Johan Selbing were commissioned by Jardins de Métis to design Courtesy of Nature, a contextual art installation surrounding living trees and ferns. The temporary gallery was featured as part of this year’s International Garden Festival, running through September 29. […]
