Revista d'Igualada

The Revista d'Igualada is a Catalan-language publication dedicated to thought and culture, focusing on the Anoia region and broader topics of general interest. It first appeared in 1929, at the end of the dictatorship of Primo de Rivera, and ceased publication in 1930 after General Berenguer took office in Madrid. Only nine issues were produced in that first era. The journal was revived in 1999 by the Associació Revista d'Igualada, founded specifically to edit and publish it. Under the direction of the writer Antoni Dalmau i Ribalta, the second era established the magazine as a key platform for cultural and intellectual debate in the region. After Dalmau's death in 2022, the print edition was discontinued, and the association shifted to maintaining a digital archive of the 70 published issues, offering digital versions of the nine first-era issues and books edited by the association, and promoting cultural activities about Igualada and its comarca. In 2024, the Revista d'Igualada en línia was launched as a third era, entirely digital, to continue publishing studies and articles of regional scope. The current president, since 2022, is Josep Maria Solà Bonet, and the working team includes Maria Enrich Murt, M. Teresa Miret Solé, Flocel Sabaté Curull, Joan Sellarès Alegre, Marta Vives Sabaté, and Pau Llacuna Ortínez, who coordinates the online edition. The publication remains a reference tool for disseminating the work of researchers and a symbol of Catalan cultural identity.

The Revista d'Igualada first appeared in 1929, at the end of the dictatorship of Primo de Rivera (1923–1930). It was published by a group of young people with literary and artistic interests, united by friendship and previous collaborations in local periodicals. They wanted the magazine to reflect the cultural life of the city and of Catalonia, a modern publication, "free of inopportune and backward-looking clichés," Catalan, intellectual, and with a marked concern for aesthetics. Its ideological orientation was primarily Catalanist and progressive Christian, close to the Lliga Regionalista of Francesc Cambó, and it welcomed contributions from people further to the left, although it was obliged to pass government censorship. The magazine was monthly, with its editorial office at carrer de Sant Jaume, number 6 (today plaça de Sant Miquel), and printed in the workshops of Pere Bas i Vich. The cover, on thicker paper, usually included the table of contents. The first issue featured a drawing by Ramon Estany Serra. Advertising occupied three or five pages at the beginning and end of each issue, leaving the central body for text. Most ads were regional: banks, shops, products (Anís del Noya, Guasch handkerchiefs, Orpinell cava, Smoking rolling paper), but there were also more general or Barcelona-based ones. The editorial reflected on social, cultural, civic, or political aspects and insisted on the capacity of young people to introduce changes for improvement. Feature articles dealt with sports, theatre, ethics, plastic arts, music, youth, the role of women, avant-garde movements, etc. There were also collaborations and literary creation works. From issue 4, a section called Notes bibliogràfiques or Bibliogràfiques began, containing book reviews and critical commentary on recent editorial novelties. The only fixed section was Garba, a cultural news bulletin from Igualada, which collected short notes, announcements of activities, and opinions on facts and customs of the city. The graphic image was due to the good work of printer Pere Bas i Vich. The layout of texts and margins, colour, drop caps, borders, vignettes, and any other typographic element were carefully chosen and used with good taste. Illustrations included drawings, caricatures, and photographs that complemented the texts, as well as typographic resources of the printer. The members of the team shared Catalanist ideas, cultural concerns, and youth, as most were around twenty-five years old. The founders were: Joan Llacuna i Carbonell, Joan Riba i Faura, Josep Andreu i Massip, Josep Closa i Boyer, Josep Ferran i Soler, Josep Riba-Clavé, Josep Vall i Fàbregas, Lluís Riba-Martí, Lluís G. Serra i Atset, Pere Puig i Quintana, Ramon Estany i Serra, Ramon Godó i Valls, and Ramon Pipó i Graells. Most founders were also editors and frequent contributors: Antoni Borràs i Quadres (geography and hiking), Gabriel Castellà i Raich (history), Josep Ferran i Soler, Ramon Godó i Valls, and Ramon Pipó i Graells (feature articles and news), Joan Llacuna i Carbonell (poetry), Emili Marimon i Comas (music), Jesús Planas i Carol (literary criticism), Pere Puig i Quintana (society and politics), Joan Riba i Faura (Igualada cultural activities), Lluís Riba Martí (literary creation and criticism), Lluís G. Serra i Atset (literary and current affairs criticism), and Rosalina Poch i Ferrer, who wrote about women. There were also contributions from intellectuals from across the Catalan Countries, such as Xavier Benguerel, César Martinell, and Carles Rahola. As for illustrators, Ramon Estany i Serra was the author of the first cover, and there were drawings by Lluís M. Albín i Solà, Lluís Riba-Martí, Albert Ràfols, Joan G. Junceda, and Antoni Ollé i Pinell (wood engravings). The quality of the content combined with an artistic formal presentation made the Revista d'Igualada, despite the few issues published, a publication of recognized prestige in the press of the Anoia region. The magazine ceased publication after General Berenguer took office in Madrid in 1930; nine issues had been edited. The second era began in 1999, when the title Revista d'Igualada was chosen for a new publication on thought and culture, as a small homage to the editorial work carried out by a group of young people from Igualada seventy years earlier. It was founded on the initiative of nearly thirty people who, like the first founders, belonged to the same generation and shared cultural and artistic concerns, along with democratic and Catalanist values. The magazine emphasizes art, literary creation, social sciences, and history. It covers very diverse topics and aims to be a platform where people from the region who have dedicated themselves to research in various fields can express themselves. The Associació Revista d'Igualada was founded in 1999 to edit the Revista d'Igualada. In 2022, after the death of director Antoni Dalmau, the Revista ceased print publication. The association then took over the continuity of the website to: maintain digital consultation of the 70 published magazines, with their indexes and search engines; publish the digital version of the nine issues of the first era; offer the digital version of books edited by the Associació Revista d'Igualada; and promote cultural activities about Igualada and its comarca. In 2024, the Revista d'Igualada en línia was started, which is a third era of the publication, now in digital format, to host studies or articles of regional scope and continue to be a reference and a tool for disseminating the work of researchers. Since 2022, the president is Josep Maria Solà Bonet and the working team consists of Maria Enrich Murt, M. Teresa Miret Solé, Flocel Sabaté Curull, Joan Sellarès Alegre, Marta Vives Sabaté, and Pau Llacuna Ortínez, who is the coordinator of the Revista d'Igualada en línia.

• First era of Revista d'Igualada launched, at the end of the dictatorship of Primo de Rivera.

• Publication ceased after General Berenguer took office in Madrid; nine issues had been published.

• Second era begins; Associació Revista d'Igualada founded to edit the magazine.

• After the death of director Antoni Dalmau, print publication ceases; association maintains website and digital archive.

• Josep Maria Solà Bonet becomes president of the association.

• Revista d'Igualada en línia launched as a third era, digital-only.

A Catalan cultural and thought journal focused on the Anoia region, serving as a platform for research and cultural dissemination.

• Revista d'Igualada (print, first era)

  Monthly cultural magazine published 1929–1930, nine issues.

• Revista d'Igualada (print, second era)

  Quarterly cultural magazine published 1999–2022, 70 issues.

• Revista d'Igualada en línia

  Digital-only edition launched in 2024, third era.

• Digital archive

  Online access to all published issues with indexes and search engines.

• Books edited by the association

  Digital versions of books published by Associació Revista d'Igualada.

1. 1Revista d'Igualada official websiterevistaigualada.cat
2. 2Revista d'Igualada - Wikidatawikidata.org
3. 3Revista d'Igualada - Wikipedia (Catalan)ca.wikipedia.org