The Editor’s Curiosity: Pere Gimferrer, Seix Barral, and the Reconstruction of the Cultural Field in Democratic Spain
Abstract
This article examines the transformations of the publishing industry in Spain over the past few decades, paying particular attention to Pere Gimferrer. His work has been crucial to understanding the evolution of the literary field since the Franco dictatorship. Drawing on his career as an editor at Seix Barral, the study analyzes how Gimferrer combined his advocacy of an avant-garde sensibility, exemplified by authors such as Octavio Paz and Rafael Alberti, with his early support for emerging voices, including Eduardo Mendoza and Antonio Muñoz Molina. The article posits that Gimferrer’s most enduring legacy lies in his role as a cultural mediator and architect in democratic Spain, where his editorial intuition helped redefine the literary canon and establish new standards of legitimacy.
Submitted: Feb. 6, 2025 | Published Dec. 12, 2025 | Language: es
Keywords Pere Gimferrer • Edición literaria • Cultural field • Vanguardia • Campo cultural • Democratic transition • Seix Barral • Transición democrática • Avant-garde • Literary publishing
Copyright © 2025 Eloi Grasset. This is an open-access work distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction is permitted, provided that the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. The license allows for commercial use. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
Permalink http://doi.org/10.30687/Ri/2037-6588/2025/25/007