Blanca Varela facts for kids

Blanca Leonor Varela Gonzáles (born August 10, 1926 – died March 12, 2009) was an important Peruvian poet. She was the daughter of Serafina Quinteras, who was a writer, poet, singer, and journalist. Blanca Varela is known for her unique and powerful poetry.

Her Life Story

Blanca Varela was born in Lima, the capital city of Peru. Her mother was a talented composer who wrote many popular Creole waltzes.

Blanca studied Humanities and Education at the National University of San Marcos in Lima. There, she met many other young people who would become famous writers. She also met her future husband, Fernando de Szyszlo, who was an artist and sculptor. They had two children together.

In 1949, Blanca and Fernando moved to Paris, France. This was a very important time for Blanca. She met Octavio Paz, a famous Mexican writer, who became a great friend and mentor to her. Octavio Paz introduced her to many well-known artists and thinkers in Paris, like André Breton and Jean-Paul Sartre. She also met other Latin American writers living in France.

Blanca was part of a group of artists and writers from Latin America who often met at the Café de Flore. They would talk about how they could be part of the modern art movement while still keeping their Latin American culture. Octavio Paz encouraged Blanca to share her poems with the world. He even wrote the introduction for her first book of poetry, Ese puerto existe (which means That port exists), published in 1959.

After living in Paris, Blanca also spent time in Florence, Italy, and Washington, D.C., in the United States. In 1962, she returned to Lima, Peru. From then on, she mainly traveled to the U.S., Spain, and France.

Blanca Varela received many important awards for her poetry. These include the Medalla de Honor from Peru's National Institute of Culture, the Premio Octavio Paz de Poesía y Ensayo (Octavio Paz Prize for poetry and essays), and the Premio Internacional de Poesía Ciudad de Granada Federico García Lorca (Federico García Lorca International Poetry Prize) in 2006. She was the first woman ever to win this Granada prize. In 2007, she also won the Premio Reina Sofía de Poesía Iberoamericana (Queen Sophia's Prize for Iberoamerican Poetry).

Her Poetry

Blanca Varela's poems are often described as surrealist. This means they try to show the world in a dream-like or imaginative way, often from a very personal viewpoint. Her poems explore deep feelings and ideas, sometimes showing how harsh the outside world can be.

A famous Peruvian writer, Mario Vargas Llosa, once said that Blanca Varela's poems are like heroes from old myths. They keep fighting until the very end, even when things are tough. Her poetry tries to find perfection with every new poem she writes.

Blanca Varela's books have been translated into many languages, including English, German, Italian, Portuguese, Russian, and Czech. This shows how much her work is appreciated around the world.

Books of Poetry

Here are some of her well-known collections of poetry:

• Ese puerto existe (That port exists), 1959
• Luz de día (Daylight), 1963
• Valses y otras falsas confesiones (Waltzes and other false confessions), 1971
• Canto Villano (Song of dirtiness), 1978
• Camino a Babel (Road to Babel), 1986
• El libro de barro (The Book of Clay), 1993-1994
• Concierto animal (Animals' concert), 1999
• El falso teclado (The Fake Keyboard), 2001

See also

In Spanish: Blanca Varela para niños