By Roberto Vega Andersen As the grandson of immigrants and a Creole mother, when faced with a blank sheet of paper – my favorite exercise in writing each editorial – I felt the need to express my rejection of the measures adopted by the president of the United States, Donald Trump, against undocumented immigrants. The raids put millions of undocumented workers on alert, who fill those positions least sought after by Americans. Certain sectors of the economy will suffer directly from their absence – today for fear of being singled out, tomorrow for being deported? – since the labor force was largely provided by these communities of foreigners. We are referring to construction, agriculture, hotels and restaurants, domestic service and many other areas. The fines imposed on those who hire undocumented personnel reach 1,000 dollars a day. This wave of repression reminds me of a municipal election in France, of which I was a circumstantial witness. In those years, Jean-Marie Le Pen [1928 - 2025] was dreaming to his growing electorate about a nation free of illegal immigrants, and in his campaign he promoted the denunciation of those who did not denounce the presence of these "criminals." On that trip I visited the tomb of Joan of Arc, burned at the stake in 1431 and declared a saint of the Catholic Church in 1920. Civilization, this philosophical and material construction that involves us, brings together diverse and even opposing views. The guidelines that today come from the White House are projected throughout the planet; in some countries they resemble gentle breezes without consequences, in others they sow difficulties and in the rest they sound like a hopeful air. At the same time, the culture of each territory, of each community, clings to its foundations and recreates new tomorrows, more human, more empathetic, more fair… From Hilario, in a month that is unforgettable for us, we announce that the next issue will arrive in March –as we do every year–, and we commit to continue along this path, every day with more readers accompanying us. In line with this signal, we invite you to share the magazine promoting the “word of mouth” of yesteryear.
January 2025
Editorial
The blue shield of UNESCO, distinction and protection for cataloged assets
By Pablo Luis Gasipi *«Besides being in the Argentine Republic, what do the Nicolás Avellaneda transporter bridge and the Frigate Presidente Sarmiento museum ship –both located in Buenos Aires–, or the Cathedral and the Cabildo of San Salvador de Jujuy, the Curuchet house and the building of the Rectorate of the National University of La Plata, located in the province of Buenos Aires, and even the Río Negro Lighthouse, in Viedma, and the Civic Center and the Llao Llao hotel in Bariloche, in the province of Río Negro, have in common?» A lawyer with a degree in arts and culture legislation, the author, a public prosecutor committed to the protection of cultural heritage, presents us with the character of the so-called “blue shield” of UNESCO.
Celsius 1451
By Irina Podgorny *Unwanted effects, an artistic installation presented at the Amano Pre-Columbian Textile Museum in Lima, allows the author to enter into the ancient knowledge of fire and its effects. “In the work of Carlos Runcie Tanaka there is a theory of the Earth. Or two, three. Maybe five. Many, several, as many as hands, eyes and trades have been dedicated from the Neolithic to today, to thinking about the balance between solid and liquid, between the forces of heat and cold. Without exaggeration, the potter's laboratory seems to have shaped the hypotheses to explain or understand the formation of minerals found in nature. Or it could have been the other way around [...]»
Adventurers of early photography. The surprising case of the Austrian A. Schier.
By Abel Alexander *«This work can be referred to the famous popular phrase “There is no deadline that is not met, nor debt that is not paid” because, around January 1983, we acquired in Buenos Aires the book “Focust East - Early Photography in the Near East [1839-1885]” by the notable Israeli photo historian Nissan N. Perez [1947] and in which we found, with surprise, the name of the photographer Schier, a German surname that coincides with a professional working in Buenos Aires around the 1870s and of whom we even had a small collection of six carte-de-visite. After 32 years we have paid the debt and we present for your consideration this second installment of an exciting history of early international photography that unites three continents through its images.»
Comparing the incomparable, stories that link distant times and geographies
By Teresita Donadío and Enrique Taranto *«Science, art, daring and perhaps also the fruitless task of comparing the incomparable, catches us again when we refer to one of the wonders of our continent, located in the heart of viceregal Peru. We had already addressed this crazy mission in the previous issue of Hilario, when we referred to the Joya de Cerén archaeological park, a surprising site, located in the Republic of El Salvador. In this new challenge, we warn you, a sterile task, we will move forward with two other South American examples that well deserve to be part of this chimera. Thus, comparing the Sistine Chapel with the church of Andahuaylillas constitutes a flagrant irreverence towards one and an act of humiliation and injustice towards the other. [...]»
The Mapuche Kollón
By Juan Painecura *The voice of a Mapuche silversmith [retrafe] allows us to know the history and identity features of the mask [kollón] made of different materials. During his visit to Buenos Aires he focused his attention on a silver specimen, and from his homeland he sent us this article, ready to share his knowledge and feelings «with those people who are sensitive to the cultures of the Native Peoples».
Summer readings: three contemporary Argentine novels
Summer and vacations, with their relaxed time, allow us to read things that the rest of the year, full of activities and responsibilities, makes difficult for us. Here are three novels that we invite you to enjoy. They are creations by contemporary Argentine writers, very different from each other, all of them awarded and praised.
The Federal Boudoir and its mysteries
By Roberto Vega Andersen«The discovery of the work awakened the atmosphere from its summer nap, and we included in this reaction art scholars, museum officials and directors, journalists and of course, collectors. The Federal Boudoir was thus once again the protagonist of the most diverse conversations. The news appeared in two newspaper articles signed by Alejandra Laera [Clarín digital] and Daniel Gigena [La Nación digital] and the exchange of queries was very intense on the days of the exhibition. [...]»
The Library and Documentary Collection of Jorge Martín Furt
By Guillermo Palombo *His life, his editions, his library and documentary collection are analyzed in detail by the researcher Guillermo Palombo. Among so many treasures, Furt bought the personal archive of Juan Bautista Alberdi, thousands of letters... Today one might think that it should belong to the State. Furt bought it in 1946 for the sum of 40,000 pesos –the amount of the mortgage on his Bragado farm, La Colorada ranch, of 680 hectares–, after its owner offered it in vain to the National Government. In this way he prevented it from being dispersed, or from going abroad. During his life he treasured it, studied it and preserved it, a task that his daughter continued. Today it remains at the National University of General San Martín (UNSAM) and in its Center for Philological Studies that bears the name of "Jorge M. Furt".
Mabel and María Castellano Fotheringham, collectors.
By Patricio López Méndez *«In the eighties, several examples of Jumeau bébés, the best French dolls, participated in an exhibition of antique toys held at the Fernández Blanco Museum. Since then, Mabel and María forged an indissoluble bond with that institution. First there was Barro y fuego, an exhibition of their mother's ceramics that motivated the donation in 1994 of a 14-piece Nativity scene. Four years later, they made a new and important donation, this time of paintings, images, furniture and colonial silverware. In 2003, their intention to donate the doll collection was made public with a memorable exhibition that still today registers the largest number of visitors at the Palacio Noel headquarters.»
Weaving natural color. A chromatic symphony
By Roxana Amarilla *«The Earth dyes is an exhibition dedicated to artisanal dyeing knowledge, produced entirely by the Argentine Handicraft Market of the Secretariat of Culture of the Nation. It is made up of more than one hundred textiles made by eighty-seven artisans from twenty-two provinces. Although its focus is dyeing knowledge, the craftsmanship gathered in the exhibition presents a notable technical rigor in textile knowledge in general.» Under the curatorship of Fernando Martumanina, the works are organized into seven chromatic groups [...]
«Secret Museum. From the reserve to the gallery» at the National Museum of Fine Arts
By Guillermo Vega FischerOn January 21, the retrospective exhibition «Secret Museum. From the reserve to the gallery» was inaugurated to the public at the National Museum of Fine Arts. The works belong to the museum's collection, but they are the ones we do not see exhibited in the permanent collection rooms, that is, those that make up its reserve. Paintings, drawings, engravings, photographs, sculptures and installations by some 250 Argentine and foreign artists, from the 14th century to the present, many of them never exhibited.
Farol, a date with art, nature, mysticism and good books
The initiative arouses curiosity and enthusiasm. On the weekend of February 22 and 23, at km 170 of national route 205, in the Eduardo Holmberg Nursery in Cazón, 15 km from Saladillo [Buenos Aires province], a fair called Farol will bring together publishers, bookstores and paper artisans together with musicians and other nature lovers. To have a good time!
Correo de lectores
Si usted nos autoriza, compartiremos sus palabras con nuestra comunidad.
4 Comentario(s)
Manuel Luis Martí
[Doctor en Medicina, miembro de la Academia Nacional de Medicina, institución que presidió. Miembro de número de la Academia Belgraniana de la República Argentina y del Instituto Bonaerense de Numismática y Antigüedades, entre otras. Ha publicado más de veinte libros.] Muy interesante el artículo del Maestro Alexander. La frase mencionada también es: "No hay plazo que no se cumpla, ni tiento que no se corte" Felicitaciones por todos los éxitos. Abrazo. Mamuel Luis Martí
Pablo L. Gasipi
(Abogado, diplomado en legislación del arte y la cultura, disertante y profesor universitario, auxiliar fiscal en la Justicia en lo Criminal y Correccional Federal de la Capital Federal)
Felicitaciones, una vez más, a HILARIO y sus gestores. Calidad, profundidad y entretenimiento pueden avanzar juntos. Así que, además, GRACIAS por esta nueva entrega. Leyendo la llegada de Teresita Donadío y Enrique Taranto a la capilla de Andahuaylillas recordé mi impresión al haber entrado, en marzo de 2015 ... Iba de Cusco a Puno por la ruta, en el camino pude ver varias construcciones jesuíticas similares, aunque esta es ciertamente la más impactante. Admirar (porque no cabe otra acción) esas pinturas, toparse con esa luminosidad, conocer sobre lo bien conservadas que están la construcción y sus pinturas murales y la pasión de los lugareños por explicar frente a qué me hallaba fueron los motivos de mi demora en ese caserío, desde entonces entrañable a mis recuerdos. Aunque esté lejos y fuera de los circuitos turísticos programados, quien se desvíe hasta allí no se defraudará.
Osvaldo Mondelo
[Periodista, Investigador histórico-fotográfico. Es autor de Tehuelches, danza con fotos y de Mulato (Chünjalawum). Cuando las ovejas corrieron a los tehuelches en la Patagonia de próxima edición Como siempre Hilario iluminando desconocidos laberintos de nuestra identidad argentina y latinoamericana en un tiempo donde sobran los silencios.
Dr. Augusto Soiza Larrosa-Montevideo, Uruguay
[Médico. Expresidente y Miembro de Honor de la Sociedad Uruguaya de Historia de la Medicina. Miembro de Número del Instituto Histórico y Geográfico del Uruguay] He leído con intenso placer el erudito artículo de Guillermo Palombo sobre la biblioteca del bibliófilo Jorge Martín Furt. Ante el párrafo sobre Eleuterio Tiscornia en relación con el "Martin Fierro" fui de inmediato a mi biblioteca y extraje el "Martín Fierro. Comentado y anotado por Eleuterio F. Tiscornia", edición de Coni, Buenos Aires, 1951 [aunque impresa según el colofón en mayo de 1952] que el 15 de noviembre de 1991 le compré al librero Alberto Casares. Una preciosa edición encuadernada en cuero verde, con la firma reproducida en dorado de José Hernández en la tapa. Con sorpresa comprobé que la edición contenía la Advertencia de . . . Jorge M. Furt datada en Luján en mayo de 1951, ignorado para mí hasta ahora. Y en la portada la reproducción de la alegoría central de la rastra del bisabuelo de Furt. La información proporcionada por la Revista Digital Hilario siempre nos aporta sorpresas y buena información. Felicitaciones al autor Palombo y al editor de la revista.
Staff
Esta publicación no comparte necesariamente las opiniones de todos los autores de los textos editados.