Gilberto Owen
Encyclopedia
Gilberto Owen Estrada was a Mexican
poet and diplomat.
, Gilberto Owen was born in Rosario, Sinaloa (May 13, 1904). He spent some of his early years (1919–1923) in Toluca
, where he studied at the Instituto Científico y Literario. In 1923, he left Toluca and went to Mexico City
, after he got contact to General Álvaro Obregón
, who engaged him in the Secretaría de la Presidencia, where he served from August 1923 to June 1928. He matriculated in the Escuela Nacional Preparatoria
. At this time he met the actress Clementina Otero
, and people like Bernardo Ortiz de Montellano
, Salvador Novo
, Xavier Villaurrutia
, Jorge Cuesta
, Carlos Pellicer
, Jaime Torres Bodet
, José Gorostiza
, Enrique González Rojo
and others, when he joined the group Los Contemporáneos
, where he also wrote for the magazine "Ulises" in 1926. He is presumed to be the romantic one and the least civilized of the group.
He spent some years in Bogota where he worked as a journalist and newspaper translator. It has ben published receantly a compilation of his work in
Bogota, Colombia. Editors Celene García Ávila and Antonio Cajero rescued from El Tiempo (1933-1935) articles and chronicles which display a variety of styles and deal with topics such as politics, extraordinary facts and lifestyle in Latin America. This book was published by Miguel Angel Porrua and Autonomous University of the State of Mexico (UAEM) in 2009.
In July 1928 he became diplomat of the Secretaría de Relaciones Exteriores, and so he lived and wrote the longest time of his life abroad, first in the United States, later in Peru, Ecuador, and at the end of 1932 in Colombia, where he married Cecilia Salazar Roldán on December 2, 1935, daughter of the Colombian General and governor of Panama Víctor Manuel Salazar. In Bogotá
he published sporadically in the newspaper "El Tiempo". AFter his marriage failed, he returned to Mexico in 1942, where he wrote for the magazine "El hijo prodigo". In the end of the 1940s he had serious health problems, when he was transferred to the Consulate of Mexico in Philadelphia, where he finally served as vice-consul.
Owen died due to a cirrhosis, and is buried in the Holy Cross Cemetery, Philadelphia.
Celene García Ávila y Antonio Cajero Vázquez (2009), Gilberto Owen en El tiempo de Bogotá, prosas recuperadas (1933-1935)
, http://redalyc.uaemex.mx/pdf/104/10414216.pdf
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
poet and diplomat.
Biography
Officially registered as Gilberto Estrada, son of Margarita Estrada from MichoacánMichoacán
Michoacán officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Michoacán de Ocampo is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 113 municipalities and its capital city is Morelia...
, Gilberto Owen was born in Rosario, Sinaloa (May 13, 1904). He spent some of his early years (1919–1923) in Toluca
Toluca
Toluca, formally known as Toluca de Lerdo, is the state capital of Mexico State as well as the seat of the Municipality of Toluca. It is the center of a rapidly growing urban area, now the fifth largest in Mexico. It is located west-southwest of Mexico City and only about 40 minutes by car to the...
, where he studied at the Instituto Científico y Literario. In 1923, he left Toluca and went to Mexico City
Mexico City
Mexico City is the Federal District , capital of Mexico and seat of the federal powers of the Mexican Union. It is a federal entity within Mexico which is not part of any one of the 31 Mexican states but belongs to the federation as a whole...
, after he got contact to General Álvaro Obregón
Álvaro Obregón
General Álvaro Obregón Salido was the President of Mexico from 1920 to 1924. He was assassinated in 1928, shortly after winning election to another presidential term....
, who engaged him in the Secretaría de la Presidencia, where he served from August 1923 to June 1928. He matriculated in the Escuela Nacional Preparatoria
Escuela Nacional Preparatoria
The Escuela Nacional Preparatoria , the oldest senior high school system in Mexico, belonging to the National Autonomous University of Mexico , opened its doors on February 1, 1868. It was founded by Gabino Barreda, M.D., following orders of then President of Mexico Benito Juárez...
. At this time he met the actress Clementina Otero
Clementina Otero
Clementina Otero de Barrios was a Mexican actress and belonged to the pioneers of Mexican avant-garde theater. She was the last living member of the Los Contemporáneos group....
, and people like Bernardo Ortiz de Montellano
Bernardo Ortiz de Montellano
Bernardo Ortiz de Montellano was a modern Mexican poet, literary critic, editor, and teacher.Ortiz de Montellano visited the Escuela Nacional Preparatoria...
, Salvador Novo
Salvador Novo
Salvador Novo López was a Mexican writer, poet, playwright, translator, television presenter, entrepreneur, and the official chronicler of Mexico City, his birthplace and home. As a noted intellectual, he influenced popular perceptions of politics, media, the arts, and Mexican society in general...
, Xavier Villaurrutia
Xavier Villaurrutia
Xavier Villaurrutia y González was a Mexican poet and playwright, whose most famous works are the short theatrical dramas, called Autos profanos, compiled in the work Poesía y teatro completos published in 1953....
, Jorge Cuesta
Jorge Cuesta
Jorge Mateo Cuesta Porte-Petit was a Mexican chemist, writer and editor.- Biography :...
, Carlos Pellicer
Carlos Pellicer
Carlos Pellicer Cámara , born in Villahermosa, Tabasco, was part of the first wave of modernist Mexican poets and was heavily active in the promotion of Mexican art and literature...
, Jaime Torres Bodet
Jaime Torres Bodet
Jaime Torres Bodet was a prominent Mexican politician and writer who served in the executive cabinet of three Presidents of Mexico....
, José Gorostiza
José Gorostiza
' was a Mexican poet, educator, and diplomat. For his achievements in the poetic arts, he was made a member of the .-Biography: was born in the riverine city of , then known as , to and . His younger brother would also become an important artist. He moved to Mexico City to attend the National...
, Enrique González Rojo
Enrique González Rojo, Sr.
Enrique González Rojo was a Mexican writer.- Biography :González Martínez was the son of the poet Enrique González Martínez and his wife Luisa Rojo. He had two siblings...
and others, when he joined the group Los Contemporáneos
Los Contemporáneos
Los Contemporáneos can refer to a Mexican modernist group, active in the late twenties and early thirties, as well as to the literary magazine which served as the group's mouthpiece and artistic vehicle from 1928 to 1931...
, where he also wrote for the magazine "Ulises" in 1926. He is presumed to be the romantic one and the least civilized of the group.
He spent some years in Bogota where he worked as a journalist and newspaper translator. It has ben published receantly a compilation of his work in
Bogota, Colombia. Editors Celene García Ávila and Antonio Cajero rescued from El Tiempo (1933-1935) articles and chronicles which display a variety of styles and deal with topics such as politics, extraordinary facts and lifestyle in Latin America. This book was published by Miguel Angel Porrua and Autonomous University of the State of Mexico (UAEM) in 2009.
In July 1928 he became diplomat of the Secretaría de Relaciones Exteriores, and so he lived and wrote the longest time of his life abroad, first in the United States, later in Peru, Ecuador, and at the end of 1932 in Colombia, where he married Cecilia Salazar Roldán on December 2, 1935, daughter of the Colombian General and governor of Panama Víctor Manuel Salazar. In Bogotá
Bogotá
Bogotá, Distrito Capital , from 1991 to 2000 called Santa Fé de Bogotá, is the capital, and largest city, of Colombia. It is also designated by the national constitution as the capital of the department of Cundinamarca, even though the city of Bogotá now comprises an independent Capital district...
he published sporadically in the newspaper "El Tiempo". AFter his marriage failed, he returned to Mexico in 1942, where he wrote for the magazine "El hijo prodigo". In the end of the 1940s he had serious health problems, when he was transferred to the Consulate of Mexico in Philadelphia, where he finally served as vice-consul.
Owen died due to a cirrhosis, and is buried in the Holy Cross Cemetery, Philadelphia.
Works
- La llama fría (short-novel), 1925
- Desvelo, 1925
- Novela como nube (prose), 1928
- Línea, 1930
- Libro de Ruth, 1944
- Perseo vencido, 1948
- Simbad el varado, 1948
- Poesía y prosa, 1953
- Primeros versos, 1957
- El infierno perdido, 1978
- Obras, 1979
Further reading
- Tomás Segovia: Cuatro ensayos sobre Gilberto Owen (Spanish), 2001 ISBN 9681661915
- Guillermo SheridanGuillermo SheridanGuillermo Sheridan is a Mexican scholar and writer born in Mexico City. As a scholar, most of his writing deals with the history of Mexican modern poetry in books like Los Contemporáneos ayer , Un corazón adicto , México en 1932 , Poeta con Paisaje Guillermo Sheridan (August 27, 1950) is a Mexican...
: Tres ensayos sobre Gilberto Owen (Spanish), 2008 ISBN 9789703239979 - Francisco Javier Beltrán Cabrera, Cynthia Ramírez: Gilberto Owen Estrada: cien años de poesía (Spanish), 2005 ISBN 9688358878
Celene García Ávila y Antonio Cajero Vázquez (2009), Gilberto Owen en El tiempo de Bogotá, prosas recuperadas (1933-1935)
External links
(Spanish), Miguel Ángel Porrúa /Universidad autónoma del Estado de México, México. ISBN 978 607 401 0787 . Print., http://redalyc.uaemex.mx/pdf/104/10414216.pdf