Libero Badii (Arezzo, Italy, 1916-Buenos Aires, Argentina, 2001) was a sculptor whose main output consisted of works of symbolic significance. During the 1950s, following a trip through Latin America, his work was influenced by Pre-Columbian art. He created the concept of "the sinister" as both a form of knowledge and a way of feeling. He named his studio-workshop Almataller [SoulShop].
Macedonio Fernández (1874-1952) was a noted figure within the literary avant-garde of the River Plate region and was considered to have been Jorge Luis Borges's mentor.
An essential quality of Libero Badii's work is the way in which it parallels the poet's quest for inspiration and expression. This document is important because it sheds light on the literary cornerstone of Badii's creation and its relationship to the symbolic. This was a decisive moment for Badii and his work; he was beginning to explore the use of color on wooden sculpture as a manifestation of Pre-Colombian art, an idea that he fully developed in Los Muñecos [The Puppets], which he began producing in 1967. The concept of "symbol-sculpture" is of enormous interest vis-à-vis the relationship between matter and what cannot be portrayed. On the other hand, it is relevant to note that Badii was thinking of graphic works at the same time as he was exploring the use of color as an expression of American-ness.