María Luisa Lecaro Pinto (Guayaquil, Ecuador, date of birth unknown – date of death unknown) was an Ecuadorian poet and pioneering feminist known for her avant-garde poetry and progressive social critiques. Writing as “Tatá” for her poetry and “Sor Marisa” in feminist essays, she contributed to Savia, Ecuador’s foremost avant-garde journal, where her work stood out for its surrealism, irony, and bold departure from the sentimental norms of the time. In 1927, Lecaro gained recognition when she placed second in Savia‘s poetry contest, with Hugo Mayo, a leading figure in Ecuadorian avant-garde, taking first. Lecaro’s essays fiercely challenged the patriarchal influence of the Catholic Church, advocating for women’s independence and self-reliance in a socially restrictive era. Although her work was largely overlooked for decades, her contributions were rediscovered in 1999 through Rodrigo Pesántez Rodas’s anthology Del Vanguardismo hasta el 50, which solidified her place as a significant voice in Ecuadorian literature and early feminist thought.
Identity and Background
María Luisa Lecaro Pinto, known by her pseudonyms “Sor Marisa” in feminist writings and “Tatá” in poetry, was a pioneering Ecuadorian poet and feminist activist born in Guayaquil. While her birth and death dates remain unknown, she was active during the 1920s—a time of social and political transformation in Ecuador. She grew up in a family involved in creative and political expression; her brother, Guillermo Lecaro Pinto, was a notable caricaturist known as “Lekropín,” who directed satirical and anticlerical publications. Lecaro’s writings and views reflect a spirit of defiance toward traditional gender roles and a deep commitment to social justice.
Literary Career and Style
Lecaro emerged as a significant voice in Ecuador’s literary avant-garde during the 1920s, primarily through her involvement with the magazine Savia, a leading publication for avant-garde writers. Known as one of the few female poets in Ecuador’s literary vanguard, she published innovative poems characterized by surreal, ironic tones, often departing from the sentimental and romantic conventions that typified women’s poetry at the time. In Savia, Lecaro shared the poetic column “Versos, chambergos y melenas” with the well-known poet Hugo Mayo, with whom she collaborated and formed a strong friendship. Her participation in Savia helped solidify her place within the Ecuadorian avant-garde movement, especially after her success in Savia‘s 1927 poetry competition, where she won second place behind Mayo.
Lecaro’s poems, such as Picadero Sinfónico, El Charco, Poema Simplista, and Boudoir Simplista, demonstrate her use of modern imagery and experimental forms. Her poems often blend elements of surrealism and dadaism, using motifs such as circuses, stars, and clouds to symbolize aspects of modernity and emotional depth. These works reflect both her avant-garde leanings and a nuanced play with the formal aspects of poetry, setting her apart as a bold and progressive literary figure.
Feminist Advocacy and Anticlerical Stance
Under the pseudonym “Sor Marisa,” Lecaro published radical feminist and anticlerical critiques in Ecuador’s press. Her essay “La mujer y sus derechos,” published in the magazine Fray K-B-Zon in 1926, challenges the Catholic Church’s influence on Ecuadorian women’s roles, arguing that the Church perpetuated women’s subordination. Lecaro’s writing called for Ecuadorian women to embrace self-reliance, asserting that women were equal to men in intellect and potential. This stance aligned her with the broader feminist movements in Ecuador, where women were mobilizing for increased rights, including suffrage, influenced by the liberal reforms that swept Ecuador in the early 20th century.
Through correspondence with Peruvian feminist poet Magda Portal, Lecaro expanded her feminist perspectives and shared a vision of female empowerment and intellectual autonomy that transcended national borders. Her feminist advocacy within Ecuador was part of a larger Latin American movement for women’s rights and self-expression, situating her as a notable figure in early 20th-century feminist activism.
Associations and Influence
Lecaro was part of a vibrant literary circle in Ecuador, her work appearing alongside prominent vanguardists such as Hugo Mayo and Enrique Avellán Ferrés. Through her contributions to Savia, a magazine directed by Gerardo Gallegos, she participated in a literary community that embraced the experimental forms of dadaism, futurism, and surrealism. While Ecuador’s avant-garde movement was loosely connected, Lecaro’s work resonated with the broader Latin American avant-garde, a movement that sought to redefine artistic expression and challenge the established norms in literature.
Legacy and Recognition
Although Lecaro’s literary output was limited, with only about a dozen poems published, her impact on Ecuadorian literature and feminism has gained recognition in recent years. She is now acknowledged as the first Ecuadorian woman to publish vanguardist poetry, setting a precedent for female voices in an era when Ecuadorian literature was largely male-dominated. Scholars such as Rodrigo Pesántez Rodas, Raúl Pacheco Pérez, and Ana María Goetschel have included her work in studies of Ecuadorian vanguardism and feminism, ensuring her place in literary history. Her work was featured in Pesántez Rodas’s anthology Del vanguardismo hasta el 50 (1999), which revived interest in her contributions to Ecuadorian avant-garde poetry.
Today, María Luisa Lecaro Pinto is celebrated as a pioneering figure who bridged the realms of feminist activism and avant-garde literature in Ecuador. Her work remains a testament to her courage and creativity, advocating for social change and self-expression during a transformative period in Ecuador’s history.
Poems
Poemas de María Luisa Lecaro (Tatá)
PICADERO SINFÓNICO
mi casa
finge la carpa de un circo…
dentro de ella
en la pista del reloj…
mi nombre
se columpia
en el trapecio del ritmo…
ta-tá ta-tá ta-tá
busco tu amor
sobre la barra
de mi corazón…
he desnudado
el cuerpo sudoroso
del misterio
y no he encontrado tu nombre
‒¿cómo es?‒
bien…
será ……………………………. más luego
mañana ……………………… u otro día
‒quizá‒
quizá ………………………….. quizá
las manos de la ternura
me cachetearán
los carrillos rosas
‒¡ah!
el canto de tus ósculos
se escucha
dentro de mi acústico
buodoir …………. musical……
mientras…………………………..
me alumbra en el cielo
la luz de plata
de esta lámpara…
¡in……
vier……
no..!
1927
EL CHARCO
a mi hermano Lekropín
las agujas de la lluvia
‒con hilas de plata‒
han bordado sobre el telar de la tierra
un charco de agua
‒espejo sin bisel‒
o una moneda
de lijado aluminium
abandonada en la vía
gorriones tejidos al croché
diseñan velocidades de «ola giratoria»
sobre el telar del espacio.
el algodón de las nubes
fabrica cosas transparentes
sobre la ciudad azul.
1927
POEMA SIMPLISTA
á ……………..?
Lekropín, lekropín, lekropín
suenan lentas
las argollas de mi hamaca espiritual
una mecedora cubista
responde ronca
tatá tatá tatá
mientras mi walthan de buffet
arma polémica
con un glorioso tambor
y gritan
el uno: mag-da mag-da
el otro: por-tal por-tal
una corneta laureada
chilla: humugo, humago humugo-forte
manayo manayo ‒piano‒
1927
BOUDOIR SIMPLISTA
en el boudoir del espacio
las seis puntas de una estrella
hincan el vientre del minuto…
la luna desviste su deshabille de nubes
tras el negro
biombo de la noche…
mientras el reloj de la hora…
finge una rubia mucama
que con plumero de cuatro plumas
sacude
los cajones del silencio……
la madrugada
llega al boudoir del espacio
como un «misifú»
cansado de correr sobre los techos
de los minutos y segundos……
1927
References
- Publicaciones UAzauy, Historia de Mujeres e Historia de Género en el Ecuador by Jennie Carrasco Molina. Retrieved on October 24, 2024. Click to view.
- Academia.edu, Historia de Mujeres e Historia de Género en El Ecuador by Ana María Goetschel. Retrieved on October 24, 2024. Click to view.
- DOKUMEN.PUB, Vanguardia latinoamericana: Historia crítica y documentos – Sudamérica, área andina centro (Tomos IV) by multiple authors. Retrieved on October 24, 2024. Click to view.
- FLACSOAndes, Orígenes del feminismo en el Ecuador: Antología compiled by Ana María Goetschel. Retrieved on October 24, 2024. Click to view.
- Archive.org, Historia de Mujeres e Historia de Género en El Ecuador by CONAMU. Retrieved on October 24, 2024. Click to view.
- Revista Altazor, Hugo Mayo y la vanguardia en Ecuador, multiple articles on the vanguard context including references to María Luisa Lecaro. Retrieved on October 24, 2024. Click to view.
- CCBenjamínCarrion.com, María Luisa Lecaro: Una Voz Vanguardista by Raúl Pacheco Pérez and Una mujer en nuestra vanguardia literaria by Rodrigo Pesántez Rodas. Retrieved on October 24, 2024. Click to view.
- Academia.edu, Tesina doctoral: Tres formas del insilio en la poesía ecuatoriana del siglo XX by Marisa Elizabeth Martínez Pérsico. Retrieved on October 24, 2024. Click to view.
- DOKUMEN.PUB, Las vanguardias literarias en Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Perú, Venezuela by multiple authors. Retrieved on October 24, 2024. Click to view.