20th Century Avant-Garde Art Movements & Spanish Influence

Avant-Garde Movements: A Reaction to Tradition

A series of influential movements across Europe reacted against romantic subjectivism and traditional realism, profoundly shaping modern art and literature.

Futurism: Embracing the New Century

Futurism championed the neglect of emotional and 'romantic' issues, instead admiring the technical advances of the new century: machines, industry, and sports.

Cubism: Pictorial Breakdown of Reality

Cubism was a movement that sought the pictorial breakdown of traditional images into various angles and perspectives. It emerged through the paintings of Pablo Picasso, Georges Braque, and Juan Gris. Its literary adapter was the French poet Guillaume Apollinaire, inventor of the calligrams.

Dadaism: Breaking with Bourgeois Society

Dadaism, created by the Romanian poet Tristan Tzara, aimed to break with the art and literature of corrupt bourgeois society. Its members sought to recover a lack of logic and innocence, offering a new view of life.

Surrealism: Unlocking the Subconscious

Surrealism originated from the Surrealist Manifesto, released by the Frenchman André Breton. Writers, film directors, and painters attempted to free the individual from rational, social, moral, and aesthetic constraints. This allowed for the full and free expression of fantasies, obsessions, dreams, and hidden desires of the artist.

In literature, Surrealism introduced automatic writing, the raw transcription of ideas and words flowing through the writer's mind.

Avant-Garde in Spain: A Unique Evolution

The avant-garde arrived in Spain in 1918, introduced by the Chilean poet Vicente Huidobro. Spanish poetry saw the emergence of distinct avant-garde movements:

Creationism: New Realities in Poetry

Creationism, founded by Huidobro and supported in Spain by Gerardo Diego and Juan Larrea, aimed to avoid the description or imitation of nature. Instead, poets sought to create new, independent realities through the poem itself.

Ultraism: Radical Language & Calligrams

Ultraism had Rafael Cansinos-Assens as its main proponent. The name derives from the word Ultra (meaning 'beyond'), reflecting its supporters' radical conception of language and poetry. Its greatest originality lies in the calligram.

Surrealism in Spain: Generation of '27

Surrealism was introduced in Spain through the work of the poet Juan Larrea Bilbao. Its practitioners included artists like Salvador Dalí and filmmakers like Luis Buñuel, along with many poets from the Generation of '27. In poetry, three names stand out: Federico García Lorca (Poet in New York), Rafael Alberti (On Angels), and Vicente Aleixandre (whose work often featured surrealist elements).

Ramón Gómez de la Serna: Master of Greguerías

Ramón Gómez de la Serna embodies the Spanish avant-garde. His work is notable for the invention of the greguería, a type of creative writing based on the unexpected association of objects.