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JUAN GABRIEL VÁSQUEZ

Recognized by critics as one of the great novelists of Ibero-America

Author and journalists. He has written numerous international best-sellers, including “The Sound of Things Falling”, and “The Shape of the Ruins”
His novel “Look Back”, won the prestigious Mario Vargas Llosa Biennial Nobel Prize, and was described by the Peruvian Nobel laureate as "one of the great novels of our language."
Recipient of the Alfaguara Prize, the International Dublin Literary Award (IMPAC), and the Royal Spanish Academy Award, among others
For his work, he has been awarded the Order of Arts and Letters of the French Republic, the Order of Isabella the Catholic conferred by the King of Spain, and the International Writer distinction granted by the Royal Society of Literature in the United Kingdom
A master on stage, he has engaged in insightful conversations with renowned figures including Mario Vargas Llosa, Carlos Fuentes, Salman Rushdie, Irene Vallejo, amongst others
Vásquez has been writing political commentary for leading publications such such as El Espectador, The New York Times, The Guardian and, above all, El País, where his articles are among the most read
An intellectual, he offers a clear-eyed, nonpartisan reflection on the fragile state of democracy today—and the possibilities for overcoming this crisis

Juan Gabriel Vásquez is widely regarded as one of the foremost novelists of our time. His literary work has been translated into more than thirty languages and honored with numerous international awards, including the Alfaguara Prize, the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award, the Royal Spanish Academy Prize, and the Mario Vargas Llosa Biennial Novel Prize. In recognition of his contribution to world literature, he was named a Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters by the French Republic in 2016, received the Order of Isabella the Catholic in 2018, and was appointed an International Writer by the Royal Society of Literature in 2022.

Vásquez has also distinguished himself as one of today’s most lucid public intellectuals. For over two decades, he has written influential political and cultural essays for El Espectador, The New York Times, The Guardian, and above all, El País, where his columns rank among the most widely read.

He has lectured at many of the world’s leading universities—including Oxford, Columbia, Georgetown, Freie Universität Berlin, and the University of Bern—and has been featured in major cultural and corporate forums. A master of the stage, Vásquez has shared thought-provoking conversations with Mario Vargas Llosa, Carlos Fuentes, Salman Rushdie, Jonathan Franzen, Javier Cercas, Philippe Sands, Leila Guerriero, Abdulrazak Gurnah, and Irene Vallejo, among many others.

Juan Gabriel tailors each presentation to the needs of his audience and is not limited to the topics mentioned below. Please contact us on any topic that interests you:

Literature
Storytelling
Politics and literature
Reflections on ethics
Algorithms and democracy

Life After Truth

A thought-provoking reflection on how post-truth, technological disruption, and new populisms are reshaping our societies. Vásquez explores how the erosion of truth has become one of the defining challenges of our time.

The Power of Stories

Humans are made of stories. The ones we tell shape who we are and how we understand others. But stories can also be dangerous—they can manipulate, distort, and divide. A reflection on the transformative power of storytelling and the responsibility that comes with it.

The New Crisis of Old Democracy

Democracy is going through difficult times. Citizens are losing trust in its institutions and, increasingly, seem willing to hand power to leaders who openly despise it—or use its tools to dismantle it from within.

The Art of Being Human: Why We Read (and Write) Novels

Literature has always helped us understand ourselves and others. Through stories, we’ve built empathy, culture, and even some of our greatest social and political achievements. But literature can also be dangerous—which is precisely why it has so often been feared and censored.

Algorithms and Democracy

Artificial intelligence and social media are reshaping our lives—but also testing the foundations of our coexistence and our democracies. A reflection from a humanist who questions what technology truly promises.