Oliverio Girondo was an Argentine avant-garde poet and prose writer whose work is characterized by playful experimentation with language and form. His early work, influenced by the Parisian avant-garde, focused on a humorous exploration of the aesthetics and absurdities of modern life. Later, his writing incorporated more elaborate metaphors and darker themes, placing him among the most significant literary innovators of the 20th century. Girondo was a key figure in the literary journal Martin Fierro, and his influence on subsequent generations of poets remains considerable.
Part of the New Directions Poetry Pamphlet series, the first English publication by a Latin American legend Virtually unknown in the English-speaking world, Girondo is one of the pioneers of Latin American literature. This selection offers a glimpse of a precise and playful writer who insisted that a poem “should be constructed like a watch and sold like a sausage.”
The collection features thirty early poems alongside twelve evocative watercolors, showcasing the poet's adventurous spirit and fascination with language. The works reflect a blend of cosmopolitan influences, highlighting a playful approach to wordplay and elements of Surrealism, inviting readers to explore a vivid interplay of imagination and artistic expression.