OSVALDO GONZALEZ REAL

(A young poet and critic, educated in the United States)

CONTEMPORARY  PARAGUAYAN  ART

Translated by RUTH KUYKENDALL

** BEFORE SURVEYING CONTEMPORARY PARAGUAYAN ART, ONE SHOULD PLACE it within its true historical perspective. Only thus can one understand certain peculiarities of the plastic arts in Paraguay. Though during the epoch of the famous Jesuit conversions indigenous artists were singled out for their work in wood carving, engraving, etc., and though a native ceramic art existed, no one art form encouraged the further development of a typical Paraguayan artistic tradition. This impasse resulted, among other reasons, from the Jesuits expulsion, which dispersed the indigenous artists, and from the unfamiliarity with ceramic art on the part of those artists who, might have been inspired by it.

** Only native ceramcs and the other componente of popular art maintained a certain continuity. Just recently, there have been exhibitions rediscovering the a rt of the Jesuit missions and indigenous ceramic art, thanks to the work of certain institutions and anthropologists. Some contemporary ceramista have been inspired more or lees successfully by indigenous motifs and aleo by folklore. Again, the political instability of the country has contributed to the exodus of artista and intellectuals who might have maintained an artistic line to form an esthetic tradition. All the reasons outlined have militated considerably against a climate favorable to the formation and growth of artistic forces.

** Paraguay's awakening in the field of the plastic arts is due principally to the brief, sporadic visits of foreign artists who have stayed for a while in the country and offered courses and conferences which appreciably influenced the most sensitive Paraguayan artists. To this positive influence one must add the usually negative one of the Paraguayans who have received fellowships for study in Europe but have returned to the country with artistic baggage new perhaps for this land but already antiquated in Europe. This misfortune is due to the lamentable fact that the fellows entered academies of the "official art" of the times, without being in touch with independent individuals or groups who could provide esthetic renewal.

** After this brief preamble, let us now consider the present state of the plastic arts in Paraguay. A few years ago the School of Fine Arts was founded as a branch of the National (that is to say, the State) University. Though quite new, this school has already begun an academic campaign with a totally negative effect upon young people with an artistic vocation. In effect, the esthetic canons which govern the school are totally outmoded; in practice the students are limited to copying plaster casts of Greek masterpieces. In general, the attitude of the professors is frankly hostile to the theories of modern art. In this sense one can scarcely expect any renewal or positive influence from the School of Fine Arts.

** Fortunately, there exist groups of independent artists who are doing truly creative work and who have a favorable influence on the members of the new generation. These artists, who have no aid or subsidy from the State, try to keep alive the essentially creative character of art in the midst of an atmosphere totally resistant to change. The problem which these artists must face is grave because they lack means to exhibit their works properly (in Paraguay there are no art galleries) and they find themselves completely deprived of public or private aid. Sporadically there are exhibits in business houses or on the streets, these being the only ways of becoming known to the public. It should be noted that no Paraguayan painter lives by pis art; the majority dedicate themselves to nonartistic activities to earn a living. Some foreign institutions (especially Brazilian) have tried to aid in the encouragement of Paraguayan artists, contributing to the support of academies of painting and engraving. Nevertheless, if no great amount of economic aid is received, the cultural ends sought cannot be attained, and the future of Paraguayan art must be considered dubious. Brazil has also contributed to the establishment of a “Little School of Art,” where children can learn to express themselves freely according to the principies laid down by Herbert Read in his EDUCATION THROUGH ART.

** Another artistic problem in Paraguay stems from the scarcity of art museums, which are of course vital in forming the taste and arousing the esthetic interest of the public. Actually, there is only one supposed museum of fine arts, the JUAN SILVANO GODOY MUSEUM, which bears the narre of the collector who gave his pictures to the State. The collection contains some examples of the art of the Jesuit missions, two pictures attributed to Murillo and Tintoretto, one Corot, one Bouchard, and aquatints by the Spaniard Ricardo Baroja. Obviously there is not a vast deal to be appreciated here. Another museum, largely historical, preserves interesting pieces of the Jesuit times and religious objects of the colonial period. It bears the narre of a Paraguayan bishop, is private, and belongs to the church. In Paraguay there are no private art collections worthy of mention. The spirit of Maecenas does not flourish here, perhaps because the privileged classes attach slight value to the possession of art objects as symbols of prestige, whether economic or cultural.

** Art criticism in Paraguay also leaves much to be desired. The absence of an historical perspective adequate for judgment plus the partiality of some critics concerned with the advancement of certain groups yields a manifestly decadent art criticism. With rare exceptions, critiques are based on extraesthetic suppositions which mislead and confuse public opinion and automatically prevent the recognition of authentic values. There has now appeared, however, a group of informed writers who are trying to extricate criticism from this predicament and restore its lost prestige. To this end, they have begun by denouncing prejudiced criticism and producing impartial, honest critical appraisals.

** Contemporary Paraguayan artists have received diverse influences, especially from foreign artists. The Mexican muralists and such painters as the Ecuadorian Guayasamín and the Brazilian Portinari have influenced the least important group in Paraguay. The most important and advanced group, however, follow European sources. We may say that those in the first group have never, or almost never, freed themselves from their influences; those in the second have achieved a stage of pure personal expression quite divorced from their models. Among the latter we include neofigurative and abstract painters.

** Before discussing the principal exponente of the plastic arts of Paraguay, we should mention a medium much used by present Paraguayan artists-the woodcut. Though the mission Indians produced interesting work in this technique, it was not revived until our time, when it is practiced by the majority of artists. Their success in this medium and preferente for it are certainly due to the fact that it lends itself to the making of numerous copies and to the desire of the artists to put their work within the economic range of most of the public, which could not afford a painting, one of a kind. The woodcut moreover lends itself to easy reproduction as illustrations in journals and books. One of the artists responsible for this renascence of the woodcut is the internationally famous Brazilian engraver LIVIO ABRAMO, who delivered lectures on the technique and awakened in many artists an interest and enthusiasm for engraving. Paraguayan artists have now won prizes in international competitions for their notably original engravings. In this connection it is sufficient to cite LOTTE SCHULZ, winner of the National Art Fund Grand Prize in the first Latin-American Engraving Competition in Buenos Aires in 1960.

** It is now time to discuss the artists selected to represent Paraguay in this panorama of Latin-American plastic arts prepared for THE TEXAS QUARTERLY. Before doing so we should note that the works reproduced in this journal are not necessarily the best major ones by the artists who will be mentioned; nevertheless, all have been chosen for their esthetic worth, though there may have been other primary reasons of a purely practical character, such as size, ease of reproduction, etc.

** ENRIQUE CAREAGA in one of the youngest exponents of Paraguayan art today. In his latest paintings one notes a tendency toward abstract expressionism recalling the paintings of the New York School, especially those of Jackson Polloek. This young painter (born in 1944) recently received honorable mention for his works presented at the John F. Kennedy painting competition organized by the Paraguayan-American Cultural Center in Asunción. A member of the "NEWEST GROUP," Careaga is a student of architecture at the National University. Some of his works have been chosen recently to round out the Paraguayan delegation which participated in the Biennial of Latin-American Painting in Córdoba, Argentina. He has exhibited in commercial sites in downtown Asunción (since there are no private galleries) and is now thinking of exhibiting in Buenos Aires and other Latin-American cities.

** LEONOR CECOTTO is especially distinguished for some of her xylographs, executed with a fine sense of composition and of the balance of light and shade; others are remarkable technical tours de forte. Cecotto dedicates herself also to painting. She has been selected, together with other artists, to represent Paraguay in international exhibitions, especially as an engraver. In 1951 she won first prize at the Autumn Salon in Asunción. She also contributed to the International Painting Exhibition at Northwestern University and participated in the seventh São Paulo Biennial, in the Latin-American Biennial of Engraving in Chile, in the Biennial of Tokyo, and in other international exhibits. In addition, Miss Cecotto directs her own art school.

** PEDRO DI LASCIO is a naïve painter characterized by the ingenuousness of his creations, his instinctive sense of color, and the candor of his themes and compositions. With two other artists he tied for first prize in the John F. Kennedy competition arranged by the Paraguayan-American Cultural Center in Asunción. Di Lascio has exhibited in the Mexican Biennial and three São Paulo Biennials. He was among the artists representing Paraguay in the Córdoba Biennial. At present he is participating in the International Exposition of Monaco.

** EDITH JIMÉNEZ is distinguished in woodcuts for her creations of extraordinary plastic strength and excellent design. Contrasts of black and white are exploited to maximum effect to give emphasis to the composition. In executing her xylographs she frequently takes advantage of the intrinsic properties of the wood, making use of the richness of its grain. She also dedicates herself to painting, in which she tends toward abstract expressionism, achieving her effects through her sense of rhythm and through the dynamism of her compositions. She shared the first prize in the JFK painting competition of the PACC  in Asunción. Miss Jiménez has exhibited in three São Paulo Biennials, in the first Latin-American Engraving Competition in Buenos Aires, where she received the Paraguayan Embassy Gold Medal, in the Art Exhibit of America and Spain, Madrid, in the Biennial of Engraving of Chile, and in that of Tokyo. In addition, she received the Gold Medal at the Salon of Posadas, Argentina.

** WILLIAM RIQUELME, one of the youngest painters of the new generation, has interested himself in abstract expressionism, though recently he has gone over into neofigurativism with tendencies toward surrealism. Riquelme is characterized by his inventiveness and by the notable plasticity and variety of his designs. With Edith Jiménez and Di Lascio, he shared the first prize in the JFK painting competition, organized in memory of the illustrious President. He has exhibited in the Spring Salon and in 1964 in local sites (a store and a coffee shop). He was selected to participate in the Córdoba Biennial and is presently exhibiting in Monaco. Like Careaga, he is an architecture student at the National University.

** LOTTE SCHULZ is an excellent engraver, distinguished for the agility of her line, the subtlety of her technique, and the smooth lyricism of her compositions. Miss Schulz's technique is inexhaustible and her sense of rhythm extremely delicate. These same qualities may be found in her subtle drawings in India ink and water colors, in which she is eminently successful in achieving atmosphere. In addition to engraving -and among Paraguayans she has so far obtained the higliest prize foir this genre –she paints in a special and most original form: that is, on engraved leather. In this field she has been doing a series of picrures based on themes drawn from the animal kingdom: horses, ostriches, lynxes, etc. In developing her themes, she takes advantage of the rich textures and quality of the cowhide. Miss Schulz has also used leather, plain in this case, for works which depict the human figure. These are distinguished for the elegance of the figures, generally feminine, and for the effectiveness of the composition. Lately she has worked in a more abstract form, with a lyricism tending to the mathematical. She has exhibited in two São Paulo Biennials, the seventh Biennial of "Black and White" in Locarno, Switzerland, the third Engraving Biennial of Tokyo, the Art Exhibit of America and Spain in Madrid, the Latin-American Engraving Exhibit of Chile, and the first Latin-American Engraving Competition of Buenos Aires, where she won the National Art Fund Grand Prize and the La Razón Daily Gold Medal. At present she is participating in the International Exhibition in Monaco sponsored by UNESCO and in the Latin-American Young Painters Exhibition organized by the CEA and sponsored by ESSO.

**/**

Fuente: THE TEXAS QUARTERLY

is published in March, June, September, and December

by The University of Texas, Austin, Texas 78712, USA.

© 1965 by The University of Texas.

Library of Congress Catalog Card No. 50-8635.

CONTRIBUTIONS and editorial correspondence should be sent to Box 7517

University Station, Austin, Texas 78712.

Printed & bound by The Printing Division

of THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS.

COVER: Photograph by Hans Beacham/TITLE PACE : Pen drawing by Luis Zilveti

**/**

CONTENTS: THE TEXAS QUARTERLY/ Autumn 1965 Vol. VIII No. 3

AN ISSUE DEVOTED TO THE CONTEMPORARY PAINTING IN SOUTH AMERICA

·         JOSÉ GÓMEZ-SICRE: A Survey of South American Arts

·         HUGO PARPAGNOLI: Some Notes on Argentine Plastic Arts

·         ENRIQUE ARNAL: Notes on Bolivian Painting

·         MARC BERKOWITZ: The Contemporary Art Scene in Brazil

·         NEMESIO ANTÚNEZ: The Giant Stride in Chilean Art

·         MARTA TRABA: A View o f Contemporary Art in Columbia

·         JORGE BERNAT: An Essay on Ecuadorian Art

·         OSVALDO GONZALEZ REAL: Contemporary Paraguayan Art

·         JUAN MANUEL UGARTE ELÉSPURU: Some Aspects o f Modern Peruvian Art

·         GONZALO PONCE DE LEON MURO: Informal Comments on Uruguayan Art

·         CLARA DIAMENT DE SU JO : Open Letter to a University Man in Texas/ Concerning Some Venezuelan Artists

SPECIAL SECTION

·         THOMAS M. CRANFILL : The Braniff International Airways Collection

·         Reproductions from the Braniff International Airways Collection with Photographs of the Artists

·         Biographical Notes on One Hundred and Seven South American Artists

**/**

ARTISTAS PARAGUAYOS CUYAS OBRAS FIGURAN EN EL CATÁLOGO:

·         ENRIQUE CAREAGA;

·         LEONOR CECOTTO;

·         PEDRO DI LASCIO;

·         EDITH JIMÉNEZ;

·         WILLIAM RIQUELME;

·         LOTTE SCHULZ.

**/**

Este libro pertenece a la Biblioteca de la artista LOTTE SCHULZ, agradecemos el habernos facilitado la extracción de los datos contenidos en él.