The Artists as Critics. Art Review Written by Painters in the Boletín Mensual Carta Blanca 1934-1939

Abstract

This study brings together eight art reviews by Latin-American artists: David Alfaro Siqueiros (on painters Echave el Mozo and Carlos Orozco Romero), Carlos Orozco Romero (on Alvise Vivarini), Carlos Mérida (on Pieter Jansz Pourbus the Elder, Francisco Goitia, Antonio Ruiz and Eugenio Landesio), and Roberto Montenegro (on Ovens Juriane). The articles were originally published in the Boletín Mensual Carta Blanca, between 1935 and 1938, and have not been republished since. Their presentation is preceded by a short account of the Boletín, created by Salvador Novo at the insistence of Xavier Villaurrutia, as well as by a description of its contents, context and the conditions under which it came into being. We highlight the role of the Boletín in disseminating opinions and critical reviews on visual arts, and promoting the work of contemporary as well as classic artists, in the form of a high quality advertising pamphlet that contributed to the dissemination of culture in Mexico during the 1930s.