King Felipe VI presented the 2022 Cervantes Prize to Venezuelan poet and essayist Rafael Cadenas in a formal ceremony held this Monday at the Auditorium of the University of Alcalá de Henares. The moment marked a long-awaited recognition for a writer whose influence spans generations and languages, celebrated in a setting that coupled academic gravitas with a festive acknowledgment of literary achievement.
Rafael Cadenas entered the hall accompanied by his son Silvio, a quiet show of family support that underscored the personal dimension of a career-long public life. In a departure from the ceremonial attire usually associated with Cervantes Prize ceremonies, Cadenas opted for a navy blue jacket paired with a crisp shirt, a gray vest, and light beige trousers. His choice reflected a preference for understated elegance over the traditional morning suit and tie, inviting observers to reflect on the legacy of a writer whose work is marked by restraint, precision, and a distinctive voice that has resonated across generations.
As the program unfolded, questions about the prize’s prestige and the personal journey of the laureate came to the fore. The Cervantes Prize, awarded annually, carries a prize of 125,000 euros and is conferred by the Ministry of Culture and Sports. This year’s ceremony highlighted not only the literary merit of Cadenas but also the broader conversation about the role of poetry and essays in contemporary society, especially within a multicultural and multilingual literary landscape that includes voices from the Spanish-speaking world and beyond.
Notably, the event brought together a mix of cultural figures and political leaders who attended in person, marking a return to an in-person format after a period that had disrupted large public gatherings. The attendance of prominent individuals from various sectors underscored the prize’s significance as a cultural milestone, one that bridges the worlds of letters and public life. While the head of government was not present at this edition, the ceremony still drew a diverse audience eager to honor Cadenas’s contributions to literature and to the broader humanistic project the Cervantes Prize embodies.