Fernanda Laguna is poet, novelist, visual artist, publisher, and curator. Along with Cecilia Pavón, she founded and directed the multi-media art/publishing endeavor Belleza y Felicidad in Buenos Aires from 1999 through 2007. Belleza, as it is known, completely renovated the literary and art scenes in Buenos Aires, bringing together youth culture, counterculture, and high culture in a do-it-yourself style: guerilla exhibitions were held, photocopied editions (sometimes by major literary figures) were printed quickly and cheaply, and artistic disciplines were mined for all their social potential. Laguna’s novels (written under the pseudonym Dalia Rosetti and published by Mansalva) have been highly acclaimed in Argentina and abroad, and are poised to make her an internationally known figure.

Cecilia Pavón is a poet and translator from English, German, and Portuguese whose work has been published widely in South America, North America, and Europe. She has been awarded prizes and grants from the city of Buenos Aires, the Fundación Atorcha, and the Goethe Institut. With Fernanda Laguna, she was a co-founder and director of Belleza y Felicidad. Her cultural criticism has appeared in major magazines and newspapers, including Clarín and Página 12, and she teaches courses in creative writing and translation at the Centro Cultural Ricardo Rojas at the University of Buenos Aires. Her blog, Once Sur, is an ongoing source of new poetry, cultural criticism, and daily commentary.