Concepción Méndez Cuesta (Madrid, 27 July 1898 – Coyoacán, Mexico, 7 December 1986) was a leading

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

poet and dramatist and member of the

Generation of '27 The Generation of '27 () was an influential group of poets that arose in Spain, Spanish literary circles between 1923 and 1927, essentially out of a shared desire to experience and work with avant-garde forms of art and poetry. Their first form ...

who became known in the literary world under the name ''Concha Mendez''.

Early life

Concha was born into a well-to-do family and was educated in a French school, studying music and art. She was highlighted as a gymnast and became a champion swimmer. In 1919 she decided to travel the world spending time in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...

and

Montevideo Montevideo (, ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Uruguay, largest city of Uruguay. According to the 2023 census, the city proper has a population of 1,302,954 (about 37.2% of the country's total population) in an area of . M ...

. When she was nineteen she met

Luis Buñuel Luis Buñuel Portolés (; 22 February 1900 – 29 July 1983) was a Spanish and Mexican filmmaker who worked in France, Mexico and Spain. He has been widely considered by many film critics, historians and directors to be one of the greatest and ...

while vacationing in

San Sebastián San Sebastián, officially known by the bilingual name Donostia / San Sebastián (, ), is a city and municipality located in the Basque Autonomous Community, Spain. It lies on the coast of the Bay of Biscay, from the France–Spain border ...

who became her first boyfriend. They were formally engaged for five years until she became tired of his insufferable character. Through this artistic atmosphere she became friends with

Rafael Alberti Rafael Alberti Merello (16 December 1902 – 28 October 1999) was a Spanish poet, a member of the Generation of '27. He is considered one of the greatest literary figures of the so-called ''Silver Age'' of Spanish Literature, and he won numer ...

Federico García Lorca Federico del Sagrado Corazón de Jesús García Lorca (5 June 1898 – 19 August 1936) was a Spanish poet, playwright, and theatre director. García Lorca achieved international recognition as an emblematic member of the Generation of '27, a g ...

, and Luis Cernuda who encouraged her to join their group which become the

. Concha and Alberti shared a love for the sea and later in her life she considered him to be her mentor.Nicole Altamirano, "Out of the Glass Niche and into the Swimming Pool". In ''Mirrors and Echoes: Women's Writing in Twentieth-Century Spain'', 2007, p. 48 She published her first collection of poetry, ''Inquietudes'' (Concerns) in 1926. In 1931 Lorca introduced her to the poet and publisher from

Málaga Málaga (; ) is a Municipalities in Spain, municipality of Spain, capital of the Province of Málaga, in the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia. With a population of 591,637 in 2024, it is the second-most populo ...

, Manuel Altolaguirre They were married the following year and together founded the printing press ''Verónica'' which edited the publication, ''Héroe'' (for which

Juan Ramón Jiménez Juan Ramón Jiménez Mantecón (; 23 December 1881 – 29 May 1958) was a Spanish poet, a prolific writer who received the 1956 Nobel Prize in Literature "for his lyrical poetry, which in the Spanish language constitutes an example of high ...

contributed lyrical character portraits of Spanish heroes) and ''1616''. The name ''1616'' commemorates the year of the deaths of

Miguel de Cervantes Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra ( ; ; 29 September 1547 (assumed) – 22 April 1616 Old Style and New Style dates, NS) was a Spanish writer widely regarded as the greatest writer in the Spanish language and one of the world's pre-eminent novelist ...

and

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

and to foster literary relations between

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

and

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

the poems were published in their original language as well as the translation.

, Luis Cernuda, Jorge Guillén,

Pablo Neruda Pablo Neruda ( ; ; born Ricardo Eliécer Neftalí Reyes Basoalto; 12 July 190423 September 1973) was a Chilean poet-diplomat and politician who won the 1971 Nobel Prize in Literature. Neruda became known as a poet when he was 13 years old an ...

Miguel de Unamuno Miguel de Unamuno y Jugo (; ; 29 September 1864 – 31 December 1936) was a Spanish essayist, novelist, poet, playwright, philosopher, professor of Greek and Classics, and later rector at the University of Salamanca. His major philosophical ...

and Moreno Villa were collaborators.

Spanish Civil War and exile

From 1933 to 1935, Concha and Manuel lived in

where their first child died in infancy and their daughter Paloma was born. During the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...

, the couple supported the Republic but left Spain for their child's safety. They lived in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

and

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

and at the end of the Civil War they went into exile in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

where they met

Paul Éluard Paul Éluard (), born Eugène Émile Paul Grindel (; 14 December 1895 – 18 November 1952), was a French poet and one of the founders of the Surrealist movement. In 1916, he chose the name Paul Éluard, a matronymic borrowed from his maternal ...

. In 1939 they left Paris and traveled to

Havana Havana (; ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

and reestablished their printing press, ''Verónica'', publishing a poetry collection called ''El ciervo herido'' (The Wounded Deer) between 1939 and 1943. In 1944, they both went to

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

and later Manuel divorced Concha, leaving her for the Cuban actress/producer, María Luisa Gómez-Mena y Vivanco. They were both killed in a car accident while returning from the

San Sebastián International Film Festival The San Sebastián International Film Festival ( SSIFF; , ) is an annual FIAPF A category film festival held in the Spain, Spanish city of Donostia, Donostia-San Sebastián in September, in the Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Countr ...

on 23 July 1959. From 1944 to 1979, she ceased publication except for a poetry anthology in 1976. Her last book, ''Vida o río'' (Life or River), appeared in 1979. In 1990, ''Memorias habladas, memorias armadas'' (Spoken Memories, Armed Memories) was published in Madrid. This was a work drawn from tapes that had been recorded by her granddaughter Paloma Ulacia Altolaguirre. In

the ''Calle Poeta Concha Méndez'' is named after her.

Writings

*''Inquietudes'' (Concerns), 1926 *''Surtidor'' (Source), 1928 *''El ángel cartero'' (The Mailman Angel), 1929 *''Canciones de mar y tierra'' (Songs of Land and Sea), 1930 *''Vida a vida'' (From Life to Life), 1932. Prologue by

*''El pez engañado 1933-1935'' (The Deceived Fish), 1935 *''El carbón y la rosa'' (The Coal and the Rose), 1935. Read by Luis Cernuda at the Lyceum Club of Madrid, 1936 *''Niño y sombras'' (Child and Shadows), 1936 *''Prólogo de El solitario'' (Prologue to The Loner), 1938 *''Lluvias enlazadas'' (Interlocking Rains), 1939 *''El solitario (Amor)'' (The Loner, Love) 1941 *''Sombras y sueños'' (Shadows and Dreams), 1944 *''Villancicos de navidad'' (Christmas Carols), 1944 *''El solitario (Soledad)'' (The Loner, loneliness), 1945 *''Vida o río'' (Life or River), 1979 *''Memorias habladas, memorias armadas'', (Spoken Memories, Armed Memories), 1990 *''Poemas 1926-1986'', 1995. Edited by Professor James Valender, the husband of her granddaughter, Paloma *''Jeanne Marie, Los caminos del alma / Les Chemins de l’âme - memoria viva de los poetas del 27’ mémoire vive des poètes de la Génération de 1927'', éditions Paradigme Orléans

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mendez, Concha 1898 births 1986 deaths Writers from Madrid Generation of '27 Spanish feminists Exiles of the Spanish Civil War in France Spanish women poets Spanish women dramatists and playwrights 20th-century Spanish poets 20th-century Spanish dramatists and playwrights 20th-century Spanish women writers Exiles of the Spanish Civil War in the United Kingdom Exiles of the Spanish Civil War in Cuba Exiles of the Spanish Civil War in Mexico Las Sinsombrero members