Fernando Vallejo Rendón (born 1942 in

Medellín Medellín ( or ), officially the Municipality of Medellín ( es, Municipio de Medellín), is the second-largest city in Colombia, after Bogotá, and the capital of the department of Antioquia. It is located in the Aburrá Valley, a central re ...

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...

) is a Colombian-born novelist, filmmaker and essayist. He obtained

Mexican Mexican may refer to: Mexico and its culture *Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America ** People *** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants *** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...

nationality in 2007.

Biography

Vallejo was born and raised in Medellín, though he left his hometown early in life. He started studies in Philosophy at

Universidad Nacional de Colombia The National University of Colombia () is a national public research university in Colombia, with general campuses in Bogotá, Medellín, Manizales and Palmira, and satellite campuses in Leticia, San Andrés, Arauca, Tumaco, and La Paz, ...

Bogotá Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city of Colombia, and one of the larges ...

, but after one year he abandoned the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters. Soon after he began new studies on biology at the Universidad Javeriana in Bogotá, which he finished. Then he spent one year in Italy at the film academy Cinecittà, where he obtained basic notions on

cinema Cinema may refer to: Film * Cinematography, the art of motion-picture photography * Film or movie, a series of still images that create the illusion of a moving image ** Film industry, the technological and commercial institutions of filmmaking * ...

. Vallejo then returned to Colombia with the project of filmmaking. Yet after difficulties with the Colombian Government in producing and, after he produced it, in presenting his first film (it was censored), he decided to leave his country. In Mexico he produced and distributed three films about the violence in Colombia. He also wrote an award-winning children's theater script, "El reino misterioso o Tomás y las abejas." He has been living in

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

since 1971, where he not only produced his cinematographic pieces, but also the whole of his literary work. Despite time spent in other locales, mainly Europe and the United States, most of his

novel A novel is a relatively long work of narrative fiction, typically written in prose and published as a book. The present English word for a long work of prose fiction derives from the for "new", "news", or "short story of something new", itsel ...

s take place in Colombia. Some of his themes are grammar, biology, philosophy, physics,

violence Violence is the use of physical force so as to injure, abuse, damage, or destroy. Other definitions are also used, such as the World Health Organization's definition of violence as "the intentional use of physical force or Power (social and p ...

pederasty Pederasty or paederasty ( or ) is a sexual relationship between an adult man and a pubescent or adolescent boy. The term ''pederasty'' is primarily used to refer to historical practices of certain cultures, particularly ancient Greece and anc ...

adolescence Adolescence () is a transitional stage of physical and psychological development that generally occurs during the period from puberty to adulthood (typically corresponding to the age of majority). Adolescence is usually associated with the t ...

drug A drug is any chemical substance that causes a change in an organism's physiology or psychology when consumed. Drugs are typically distinguished from food and substances that provide nutritional support. Consumption of drugs can be via insuffla ...

death Death is the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain an organism. For organisms with a brain, death can also be defined as the irreversible cessation of functioning of the whole brain, including brainstem, and brain ...

and politics, mostly related to places such as Antioquia and

; yet his main theme is his life. His books are written in first person, in an autobiographical style, although he manipulates the conventions of autobiography such that the line between autobiography and fiction becomes significantly blurred. His best-known novel, '' La virgen de los sicarios'', has been translated into English as '' Our Lady of the Assassins''. It deals with his fictionalized return to Medellín, and his relationships with two teenagers caught in the local cycle of violence. The autobiographical/fiction ''La virgen de los sicarios'' was made into a full feature film in 2000 and released in the United States as '' Our Lady of the Assassins''. In 2003, Colombian filmmaker Luis Ospina made a feature-length documentary about him: "La desazón suprema: retrato incesante de Fernando Vallejo ("The Supreme Uneasiness: Incessant Portrait of Fernando Vallejo"). In April 2007, Vallejo obtained Mexican citizenship and published a letter in which he publicly renounced his Colombian nationality. The letter presents the reasons for his decision by mentioning several incidents during his career, among them the recent reelection of President

Álvaro Uribe Álvaro Uribe Vélez (born 4 July 1952) is a Colombian politician who served as the 31st President of Colombia from 7 August 2002 to 7 August 2010. Uribe started his political career in his home department of Antioquia. He held offices in t ...

, that eventually led him to this decision. Vallejo is

openly gay Coming out of the closet, often shortened to coming out, is a metaphor used to describe LGBT people's self-disclosure of their sexual orientation, romantic orientation, or gender identity. Framed and debated as a privacy issue, coming out of ...

and lives with his partner, scenographist David Antón. He is known as an animal rights defender and

vegan Veganism is the practice of abstaining from the use of animal product—particularly in diet—and an associated philosophy that rejects the commodity status of animals. An individual who follows the diet or philosophy is known as a vegan. Di ...

, and because of his

antinatalist Antinatalism or anti-natalism is the view that procreation is wrong. Antinatalists argue that humans should abstain from procreation because it is morally wrong. In scholarly and literary writings, various ethical arguments have been put forth i ...

views, he has no children. He is an

atheist Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no ...

and fiercely critical of religion.

Selected works

* "El reino misterioso o Tomás y las abejas" - he Mysterious Kingdom, or, Thomas and the Bees(1975). In ''Pilo Tamirano Luca: 2o. Concurso Nacional de Obras de Teatro''. México, DF: IMSS. * Logoi: una gramática del lenguaje literario (1983) * Barba Jacob, el mensajero (1984) * The Blue Days - ''Los días azules'' (1985) * The Secret Fire - ''El fuego secreto'' (1987) * The Roads to Rome - ''Los caminos a Roma'' (1988) * Years of Indulgence - ''Años de indulgencia'' (1989) * El mensajero (1991) * Among ghosts - ''Entre fantasmas'' (1993) * La virgen de los sicarios - ur Lady of the Assassins1994) * Chapolas negras (1995) * The Darwinist Tautology - ''La tautología darwinista'' (1998) * The Precipice - ''El desbarrancadero'' (2001) * Rambla Paralela - "La rambla paralela" (2002) * My Brother the Mayor - ''Mi hermano el alcalde'' (2003) * Brief Handbook of Impostorology in Physics - "Manualito de imposturología física" (2005) * The Whore of Babylon - "La puta de Babilonia" (2007) * White Crow - "Cuervo Blanco" (2012) He received the

Rómulo Gallegos Prize The Rómulo Gallegos International Novel Prize ( es, Premio internacional de novela Rómulo Gallegos) was created on 6 August 1964 by a presidential decree enacted by Venezuelan president Raúl Leoni, in honor of the Venezuelan politician and Pres ...

in 2003, one of the most prestigious prizes for

Literature Literature is any collection of written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to include ...

in the Spanish language for ''El desbarrancadero'' and, protesting the political climate in Venezuela, donated the cash from the award to Caracas's dogs. Acceptance speech at the Rómulo Gallegos prize, in Spanish

Interviews

"La sinceridad puede ser demoledora" Ciberletras, 13. Lehman University

References

External links

*"10 Most Influential Ibero American Intellectuals" of the year 2012. Foreign Policy magazin

*
Revista Semana; A su estilo, con humor negro, el escritor Fernando Vallejo renuncia a la nacionalidad colombiana
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vallejo, Fernando 1942 births Colombian biologists Colombian emigrants to Mexico Colombian film directors 20th-century Colombian novelists 21st-century Colombian novelists Colombian male novelists Mexican biologists Mexican film directors Mexican novelists Mexican male writers Living people People from Medellín Gay writers LGBT writers from Colombia LGBT writers from Mexico Anti-natalists Critics of religions Colombian atheists Mexican atheists

Biography

Selected works

Interviews

See also

References

External links