SOLLER
A glowing tribute was paid on Tuesday evening to Pere A. Serra, the founder of the Majorca Daily Bulletin and Soller's Can Prunera Modernist Museum by Oscar Mayol, the President of the Soller railway.
Acknowledging a lifetime's dedication to the art and culture of the Balearic Islands, and in particular to the heritage of the Soller valley, Mayol said at the presentation of an honorary plaque depicting Serra: Without you, neither the Soller train or the towns people could have the standing they now enjoy. The celebration took place at Soller railway station with Joana Barcelo, regional Minister for Tourism and Employment taking part in the unveiling of the plaque, the work of sculptor Jaume Mir. Inscriptions pay homage to Serra as an Honorary son of Soller.
Mayol said in his speech that the connection between Serra and the Soller train goes back all the way to 1944. At first a working relationship, Serra's commitment oversaw the conversion of the railway line and the opening of two exhibition centres, one in Palma and another in Soller.
Serra was later to play an important role in the development of the Art Train Foundation which as well as being a cultural organisation securing classic works of art, is also one which nurtures embryonic talent in the Balearic Islands.
This ethos found its full expression in the opening of the Can Prunera Modernist Museum in Calle Lluna in Soller just a year ago. Originally built in the Modernist period of the 1930s during a boom trade period between Soller and France, the converted private home and gardens has retained many architectural features with spiral staircase ballustrading and panelled glasswork being lovingly preserved.
Serra, overwhelmed by the support and appreciation of so many, said that the next tribute would have to be paid to the peope of Soller.