Galician Avant-garde Poetry Movements
European Avant-garde Poetry
The avant-gardes were currents of artistic and literary renewal that developed in the West over the first decades of the twentieth century. Among them were Dadaism, Surrealism, Cubism, Futurism, Expressionism, and Creationism. They had in common a desire to break with the prevailing aesthetic conventions through dehumanization and anti-sentimentalism, a renewal of poetic language, and radical freedom for the creator. These currents disseminated their artistic ideas through the publication of manifestos.
Avant-garde in Portuguese Literature
In Portuguese literature, the innovations of the European avant-gardes were introduced by the so-called Generation of 25, formed by authors born around 1900. However, in their works, the break with literary tradition was not total, because of their nationalist ideology, the influence of the Portuguese ‘saudade’ movement, and the presence of sentimentalisms. They drafted manifestos to publicize their ideas, both aesthetic and political, such as Beyond (1922) by Manuel Antonio and Alvaro Cebreiro. They also published avant-garde magazines: Alfar, Ronsele, Resol, Crystal.
Galician Avant-garde Movements
Various distinct currents appeared within the Galician avant-garde:
- Hylozoism
- Neotrobadorismo
- Creationism
- Pure Avant-garde
Hylozoism in Galician Poetry
Hylozoism, which achieved significant resonance during this period, is a current that builds upon the landscape poetry of the Renaissance and Antonio Noriega Varela. It adds humanizing images and employs simple, popular rhythmic forms. The most representative figure of Hylozoism was Amado Carvalho, who published two books of poems in Galician: Proel (1927) and Rooster (1928), published posthumously.
Neotrobadorismo in Galician Poetry
The emergence of Neotrobadorismo came as a result of the work of the Portuguese philologist Jose Joaquim Nunes on medieval Galician-Portuguese lyric poetry in 1928. Neotrobadoristas sought to reproduce the themes and forms of medieval songs, using features such as parallelism, the chorus, and leixaprén. The best representatives of this current were Fermín Bouza Brey, who wrote Not important at the beginning (1933), and Alvaro Cunqueiro with Cantiga new what is called Riviera (1933).
Creationism in Galician Poetry
Creationism advocated creative freedom for artists, who should not limit themselves to mimicking nature but should create something new, using suggestive and daring images (symbolism). Manuel Antonio belonged to this current, publishing the most important Galician avant-garde poetry book, From four to four, in 1928.
Composed of 19 poems and designed as the diary of a sea crossing, it describes an outward journey across the sea, symbolizing, at the same time, an inner journey through loneliness and the sense of existence. As for its language, it is cultivated, without dialectal references, and includes technical terms related to shipping.
Pure Avant-garde in Galician Poetry
Finally, we must mention the authors of the Pure Avant-garde, such as Manuel Luis Acuña, who wrote slit (1933), and Alvaro Cunqueiro with sea to the northeast (1932) and Poems of itself and not (1933). They most closely followed the tenets of the European avant-gardes, especially Surrealism and Cubism.
Luis Pimentel: A Unique Voice
A special case is that of Luis Pimentel. His poetic works, Trisco (1950) and Shadow of the air in the grass (1959), were published after the Spanish Civil War, although the poems reflect the styles of the avant-garde period. His poetry is deeply lyrical and intimate, featuring poetic images drawn from the dream world, a constant presence of interior spaces, and a simple, delicate expression with a predominance of free verse.