Detrás de la cortina [Behind the Curtain]

Beginning in the late 1950s, Antonio Berni turned to innovative collage and printmaking techniques as he pursued the central goal of his long and prolific career: an art of social engagement. He developed two narrative series based on the lives of imaginary characters Juanito Laguna, a boy from the slums, and Ramona Montiel, a prostitute from the lower class who was seduced by the media’s depiction of the good life. In this melodramatic composition, a lace curtain withdraws to reveal Ramona Montiel with a client. While Antonio Berni often used Ramona and her escapades to illustrate Argentina’s class politics and social inequality, the scene also gestures toward poverty on a wider scale. The television screen, running unnoticed in the background, shows a starving child on the news. Berni’s experiments with printmaking techniques involved embossing everyday objects in high relief on wet paper, which resulted in a sculptural form.