Publications

This catalog is published on the occasion of the exhibition Maruja Mallo. Mask and Compass, organized by the Museo Reina Sofía and the Botín Foundation, which traces the extraordinary artistic production of Maruja Mallo (Viveiro, 1902–Madrid, 1995), from the magical realism and surrealist compositions of her early years to the geometric and fantastical forms of her later works.

The publication begins with an essay by Patricia Molins, curator of the exhibition, who takes a historical and contextual look at the artist's unique and heterogeneous work, far removed from labels, molds, and imposed canons. Focusing on mythology, María Alejandra Zanetta's text explores the influence on Mallo's work of the Afro-Uruguayan and Afro-Brazilian religions that the artist discovered during her exile in Argentina. For her part, Johanna Hedva brings the figure of Maruja Mallo into the present, imagining a conversation with the artist in which she reflects on her life, her work, and her motivations. These texts are followed by a selection of writings by the artist herself from 1928 to 1976 and conclude with the reissue of an exhaustive chronology compiled by historian Juan Pérez de Ayala.