MALLO, MARUJA (ANA MARÍA GÓMEZ GONZÁLEZ)

Maruja Mallo was a surrealist Spanish painter, member of the so-called ‘Generación
del 27’.
She was the fourth daughter of fourteen children, born in Viveiro, Galicia, in 1902.
Her family moved to Avilés, where she lived for some years before settling down in a
feverish Madrid in whirl of artistic activity during the 20’s.
In Madrid she enrolled in San Fernando’s Academy of Fine Arts, where she met
Salvador Dali, who, in turn, introduced her to other memorable members of the
“Residencia de Estudiantes”, like Rafael Alberti. Some of Alberti’s poems are, in fact,
poetic transcriptions of Mallo’s paintings.
During the 1920’s, Mallo also worked on numerous literary publications and
produced several books. Author Ortega y Gasset recognized her paintings in 1928 and
organized her first exhibit in Revista de Occidente, which was very successful.
At the outbreak of the Civil War, she managed to embark to Buenos Aires where she
became a renowned painter and met intellectuals and artists like Borges, Alfonso
Reyes or Pablo Neruda.
In 1962, Maruja Mallo, or Marúnica as she presented herself, returned to Spain after
25 years of exile, but her public life was veiled. It was not until recently that Mallo
was even slightly mentioned in Spanish texts on art and cultural history.
Mallo died in Madrid in 1995 at the age of 93.
Maruja Mallo and Andy Warhol.

ACTIVITIES:
1. What type of text would you say this is? Why?
2. Where is it stated in the text that Maruja Mallo was innovative?
3. Fill in the gaps of the following biographical notes:
REAL NAME:
NICK NAME:
PLACES WHERE SHE LIVED:
ARTISTS SHE MET:
ARTISTIC MOVEMENT SHE BELONGED TO:
4. MAKE A BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF ONE OF HER PAINTINGS
5. Maruja is credited with the creation of another cultural club related to the
Generación del 27, the so-called Las sin sombrero. What does this term
suggest? Investigate and write a short paragraph about them.