The text, “Arte Suramericano” [South American Art], by Jean Emar, is one of his “Notas de arte” [Art Notes] written in the daily newspaper, La Nación between 1923 and 1925. In this text, Emar, in his capacity as an art critic, analyzed the acceptance of the ideas circulating about the existence of South American Art, and by extension, Chilean art. Emar’s investigations of the opinions in local circles led him to identify two camps: 1. Those who wished to nationalize art; 2. Those who believed that art could not have any nation. From his point of view, these investigations were not the right way to think about the problem. In the midst of the questioning he was undertaking, Emar wondered: ¿“Tener un arte propio que no se asemeja con ningún otro o que, por lo menos, tenga rasgos tan marcados que se le distinga del primer contacto?” [Do we have our own art, an art unlike any other or that at least has features so pronounced that it can be distinguished immediately by the viewer?] His response to that dilemma would be: “la única pregunta que puede formularse es si Suramérica ha aportado, o no, algo nuevo al arte total; si con el aporte de los suramericanos se ha enriquecido el arte y, por tanto, el alma humana, con una adquisición más, con un aspecto más” [The only question worth asking is whether or not South America has brought something new to world art, whether the contributions of South Americans have enriched art and therefore, the human soul, with one added element, with one additional aspect.] His response to this line of reasoning would be negative. All these considerations must be placed in the context of the debate on a national idea and the ideas of the European avant-garde, as well as both the imitation and acceptance of such ideas in local art circles, in the early twentieth century.

Jean Emar (1893-1964) was the literary pseudonym of the Chilean writer, art critic and painter, Álvaro Yáñez Bianchi. There are two aspects to the background of this “Note.” The first is that his nom de plume came from the family ties with the founder of the daily newspaper. The second has to do with the information-transfer process in the context of the circulation of art-production models, serving as a backdrop for the avant-garde trends. The acceptance of these trends stirred up a discussion of both what is ours and what is foreign. In order to resolve the debate, the [local art world] would have to bear in mind mismatched ideas: the place where they originated versus their acceptance in local art circles.The article, “Arte Suramericano” was one in a series of “Notes” written by Emar starting in 1923, upon his return from Europe, in the daily newspaper, La Nación—founded by his father in Santiago—[Studied and compiled by Patricio Lizama A.]. This morning newspaper would be systematically transformed into a medium for the dissemination of avant-garde ideas. In the Chilean painting world, these ideas would be represented by the Grupo Montparnasse, made up of Luís Vargas Rosas, Manuel Ortiz de Zárate, Julio Ortiz de Zárate, José Perotti and Henriete Petit. In other words, the group comprised Chilean painters who had studied at the Academie de la Grande Chaumière and whose periods spent in France had overlapped in the early twentieth century. Their closeness to Emar, whom they had met in Europe, led to his complicity, disseminating criticism and reporting on their exhibitions. One of the most representative exhibitions of the era was held on October 22, 1923, at the auction house, Rivas y Calvo, marking the start of what is considered a period of modernization in Chile.We should also be aware of the range of Emar’s work. In addition to being an art critic, he was an avant-garde writer and an author of stories and novels. To list just a few: Ayer [Yesterday], Un año [A Year] and Miltín 1934, all published in 1935, Diez [Ten], in 1937 and also Umbral [Threshold], a work he spent the rest of his life writing, shut in for years in Vilcún (1942-64), near Temuco, in the Araucanía region. Umbral was published posthumously.