The author analyzes the joint exhibition at the Galería de Lima. He states that the space dedicated to Fernando de Szyszlo requires effort to be promulgated given how unusual it is for the local [arts] scene. He points out that in these types of works “line and color lack the descriptive function of more common painting.” He affirms that a good number of works show promise because they reveal “a rich temperament, unified with a great sense of color and a clear spiritual restlessness (…),” although he also detects influences by Picasso. He contrasts this “severe discipline” with the work of Jorge Eduardo Eielson (exhibited in an adjacent room), author of a “euphoric color and human tenderness.” In his opinion, his drawing reveals the sensibility of a poet and, at the same time, a talent for illustration. He emphasizes the need for these approaches to see the light of day in Peru.

This is an article by Spanish-Cuban critic Antonio Flórez Estrada (1898-1954), using the initials T.F.E., on the joint exhibition of Fernando de Szyszlo and Jorge Eduardo Eielson at the Galería de Lima (August 1948).

In May 1947, the publication of the Expresión de principios [Expression of Principles] of the Agrupación Espacio ---the group composed of Peruvian architects, artists, writers and intellectuals--- marked the symbolic beginning of artistic and architectural modernism in Peru by offering a generational outlet that had been lacking in prior attempts at a renewal [of the arts]. [See in the ICAA digital archive the text by Luis Miró Quesada Garland et al., “Expresión de principios de la Agrupación Espacio” (doc. no. 1126309)]. A short time later, some members demonstrated the radical nature of [the group’s] proposals, which sought to overcome the stricture of the local arts scene through the example of the great modern masters. The same month that the Expresión de principios appeared, one of its signatories, Fernando de Szyszlo (n. 1925), held his first individual exhibition at the ICPN (Instituto Cultural Peruano Norteamericano) of Lima, where he showed works that had clearly been influenced by Pablo Picasso and Rufino Tamayo. The show was praised by progressive critics such as Juan Barreto (1913-91) [see Juan Barreto, “Nota de arte: primera exposición de Fernando de Szyszlo” (doc. no. 1151195)] —a painter affiliated with the formalist modernism of “retour à l’ordre”—and Jorge Eduardo Eielson (1924-2006), one of the most talented of the young artists and poets of the time [see Jorge Eduardo Eielson “Primera exposición de Fernando de Szyszlo (doc. no. 1151211)]. In 1948, Eielson and de Szyszlo presented a joint exhibition at the Galería de Lima characterized by the same experimental stance that sought to incorporate the pre-Colombian elements taken up by the European avant-garde trends. [see Antonio Flórez Estrada, “Exposiciones de Szyszlo y Eielson” (doc. no. 1151263)]. Their proposal was upheld by critic and journalist Samuel Pérez Barreto (1921-2003) as a means of escaping the dichotomy between modernity and localism. That same year Eielson left for Europe on a scholarship from the French government, where he had a distinguished career as a poet and visual artist. In 1949, before he traveled to Paris, de Szyszlo presented his final individual show; once abroad, he subscribed to the cosmopolitan trend of abstraction [see the review by Guido Strazza and Samuel Peréz Barrreto “Dos notas sobre Szyszlo” (doc. no. 1151228)]. This show provoked a sharp review by Carlos Raygada (1898-1953), a prestigious local critic, who attacked [the artist’s] heavy dependence on models that had at that time only been known through reproductions [see Carlos Raygada “Exposición Szyszlo” (doc. no. 1151246)]. Through these commentaries (either positive or negative), Peruvian critics took up intransigent positions regarding the rise of experimental languages that would alter the format and path of “serious” art.