![Pedro_Prado](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/10/Pedro_Prado.jpg)
Pedro Prado Calvo (8 October 1886 – 31 January 1952)
was a
Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...
an writer and architect. He won the
Chilean National Prize for Literature {{Use dmy dates, date=October 2020
In Chile, the National Prize for Literature ''(Premio Nacional de Literatura)'' was created by Law No. 7,368 during the presidency of Juan Antonio Ríos on 8 November 1942. It consists of a lump-sum monetary prize ...
in 1949.
Biography
Prado was born to parents Absalón Prado Marín and Laura Calvo on October 8, 1886. His mother died when he was two years old and his father died in 1905. In 1895, Prado was admitted to the
Instituto Nacional General José Miguel Carrera
Instituto Nacional General José Miguel Carrera, often shortened to Instituto Nacional (National Institute), is a public boys' school in downtown Santiago, Chile which teaches 4.400 students between 7th and 12th grade. 170 teachers are employed. ...
, where he studied the humanities until 1903. He also took elective courses in German, accounting, painting, and music. Prado finished the last two years of his college education at the School of Engineering of the
University of Chile
The University of Chile ( es, Universidad de Chile) is a public research university in Santiago, Chile. It was founded on November 19, 1842, and inaugurated on September 17, 1843. . He then studied at its School of Architecture for three years without earning a degree. He began to pursue his interest in painting at that time, receiving lessons from
Pedro Lira
Pedro Francisco Lira Rencoret (17 May 1845, Santiago – 20 April 1912, Santiago) was a Chilean painter and art critic, who organized exhibitions that led to the establishment of the Chilean National Museum of Fine Arts. He is best known for h ...
, a prominent Chilean artist of the 19th century.
It was around this time that Prado traveled to northern Chile, then southern
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
, where he married Adriana Jaramillo Bruce on January 1, 1910. That year he was elected President of the Federation of Students in Chile (
FECH) and attended the Congress of Students in
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...
as a delegate. Prado helped found the Chilean literary group Los Diez in 1914. In 1949 he was awarded the
National Prize for Literature A National Prize for Literature ( es, Premio Nacional de Literatura) is a kind of award offered by various countries.
Examples include:
* National Prize for Literature (Argentina)
* National Literary Awards, Burma
* National Prize for Literature ( ...
.
The Writer
He began writing poetry with “Flores de cardo”, a book published in 1908, which broke the mold of metric rhyme and marked the introduction of free verse in his country. In 1912, “La casa abandonada” introduced
prose poetry
Prose poetry is poetry written in prose form instead of verse form, while preserving poetic qualities such as heightened imagery, parataxis, and emotional effects.
Characteristics
Prose poetry is written as prose, without the line breaks associ ...
, breaking the tradition of versified poetry and founding poetic prose. In 1913, he published “El llamado del mundo”, which was followed in 1915 by the prose poem “Los diez, el claustro, la barca”. That same year, “Los Pájaros Errantes” emerged, which is reputedly his most accomplished lyrical work, utilizing Parnassianism and symbolism. His poetic creations continued with Las Copas in 1921, Karez y Roshan in 1921, and the dramatic poem Androvar in 1925.
He was a deeply philosophical novelist and his work infused creative and poetic imagery with the features of the novels popular within the region at the time. In this genre, he debuted in 1914 with “La reina de Rapa Nui”, an exotic novel where, in the guise of a simple love story, elements of
Easter Island
Easter Island ( rap, Rapa Nui; es, Isla de Pascua) is an island and special territory of Chile in the southeastern Pacific Ocean, at the southeasternmost point of the Polynesian Triangle in Oceania. The island is most famous for its nearl ...
folklore are presented. In 1920, he produced his most important and well-known work: ''Alsino'', a story with a mythical and philosophically relevant plot, written in prose and full of poetic and symbolic language. It tells the story of a small peasant boy who dreams of emulating
Icarus
In Greek mythology, Icarus (; grc, Ἴκαρος, Íkaros, ) was the son of the master craftsman Daedalus, the architect of the labyrinth of Crete. After Theseus, king of Athens and enemy of Minos, escaped from the labyrinth, King Minos suspe ...
; he leapt from a tree, and as a result of the rough landing, he grew a hump on his back from which wings extended, allowing him to fly just as he desired. The author called it a “romantic poem”. In 1924, he published ''Un juez rural'', a realistic-folkloric novel that was, to some extent, autobiographical. It reflected the authors beliefs as to the meaning of justice, the dilemmas of those who manage it, and the extent of its consequences.
As an essay writer in 1916, he wrote ''Ensayo Sobre Arquitectura y Poesía'', a book in which he elaborates his architectural thought. Later, his relationship with architecture is described in “A los Estudiantes de Arquitectura,” published in 1919 in ''Juventud Nº 3'' magazine, as well as “Del Sacrificio y la Salvación de la Belleza,” published in the 16th edition of the same magazine, and “El arte obrero, la tradición y el porvenir, published in ''
La Nación
''La Nación'' () is an Argentine daily newspaper. As the country's leading conservative newspaper, ''La Nación''s main competitor is the more liberal '' Clarín''. It is regarded as a newspaper of record for Argentina.
Its motto is: "''La Nac ...
'' on July 2, 1922. In 1924, after being asked by
Arturo Alessandri
Arturo Fortunato Alessandri Palma (; December 20, 1868 – August 24, 1950) was a Chilean political figure and reformer who served thrice as president of Chile, first from 1920 to 1924, then from March to October 1925, and finally from 1932 to 1 ...
, he wrote the essay “Bases para un nuevo Gobierno y un Nuevo Parlamento,” without any previous political experience. The military then wanted to declare themselves as co-authors, but was denied by Prado.
In 1934, Prado’s book of sonnets was published. In 1935, Prado received the “Premio Academia de Roma,” granted by the Italian embassy. That year, he also received the Premio Municipal de Santiago. In 1949, Prado was awarded the
Premio Nacional de Literatura A National Prize for Literature ( es, Premio Nacional de Literatura) is a kind of award offered by various countries.
Examples include:
* National Prize for Literature (Argentina)
* National Literary Awards, Burma
* National Prize for Literature ( ...
. He was also a member of the
Academia Chilena de la Lengua The Academia Chilena de la Lengua (Spanish for ''Chilean Language Academy'') is an association of academics and experts on the use of the Spanish language in Chile. It is a member of the Association of Academies of the Spanish Language and is a part ...
in 1950, replacing Arturo Alessandri. Prado died on January 31, 1952, due to a cerebral hemorrhage at his summer home in
Viña del Mar
Viña del Mar (; meaning "Vineyard of the Sea") is a city and commune on central Chile's Pacific coast. Often referred to as ("The Garden City"), Viña del Mar is located within the Valparaíso Region, and it is Chile's fourth largest city w ...
.
Well-Rounded Intellectual
As a painter, having taken lessons with
Pedro Lira
Pedro Francisco Lira Rencoret (17 May 1845, Santiago – 20 April 1912, Santiago) was a Chilean painter and art critic, who organized exhibitions that led to the establishment of the Chilean National Museum of Fine Arts. He is best known for h ...
, Prado devoted himself to the painting of Chilean landscapes and illustrated various publications of the time, including some of his own. In 1917 he received the Third Place Medal in Painting award at the Annual Exhibition of Fine Arts in Santiago. In 1918 he became a founding member of the National Society of Fine Arts created by
Juan Francisco González
Juan Francisco González Escobar (Santiago, Chile, September 25, 1853 – Santiago, March 4, 1933) is known as one of the four Chilean art#The Great Chilean Masters, Great Chilean Masters and as the archetypal romantic bohemian artist of the e ...
. He held a showing at the Official Exhibition of Santiago in 1921, and that same year was named director of the
Chilean National Museum of Fine Arts
The Chilean National Museum of Fine Arts ( es, Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes or ), located in Santiago, Chile, is one of the major centers for Chilean art and for broader South American art. Established in 1880 (making it the oldest in South Am ...
, a position which he held until 1923. In 1922 he held a showing at the Winter Exposition of the Artists’ Society of Chile in Santiago.
As an architect he stressed his concern for the urban landscape, becoming a staunch critic of the planning of Santiago. While serving as director of the National Museum of Fine Arts, he directed repairs to the building and criticized the precarious conditions of its construction, which left it unfinished and with evident structural flaws only a decade after its opening. Within the museum, the
Palacio Bruna
The Palacio Bruna is a palace located on the southern edge of the Parque Forestal in Santiago, Chile. The three story building has an Italian Renaissance character. It is entirely surrounded by a frieze decorated with garlands and putti, and was c ...
stands out, an embassy and consulate of the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
.
Prado represented Chile as a diplomat two times, first in 1925 for the celebration of the centennial of the
Bolivian Declaration of Independence
Bolivia's independence was definitively proclaimed on 6 August 1825 at a congress held in Chuquisaca.
Battle of Junín
While the Gran Colombian troops disembarked in the port of Callao under the command of General Antonio José de Sucre, Gen ...
, and again in 1927 when he was appointed the Plenipotentiary Minister of Chile by
Emiliano Figueroa
Emiliano Figueroa Larraín (; July 12, 1866 – May 15, 1931) was President of Chile from December 23, 1925 until his resignation on May 10, 1927. He also served as Acting president for a few months in 1910.
Biography
Figueroa was born on July 1 ...
in
Colombia
Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...
. He held this position until December 1928, and was awarded by Colombia with the
Order of Boyaca
Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to:
* Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood
* Heterarchy, a system of organization wherein the elements have the potential to be ranked a number of d ...
, commander's grade.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Prado, Pedro
1886 births
1952 deaths
Chilean male writers
National Prize for Literature (Chile) winners
Presidents of the University of Chile Student Federation