Samuel Espíndola Hernández

Department of Hispanic Languages and Literature 
Guiliano Fellow, Spring 2022

Transcribing silences: Notes on Carlos Soto-Román and Documentary Poetry

In the beginning stages of my project to research the poetry of Carlos Soto-Román, I  planned to visit important places from his literary career in the USA, namely Philadelphia and New Hampshire, where he studied a Master and was a McDowell Fellow, respectively. I was hoping to find originals from his production around the 30th anniversary of Pinochet’s coup d’état, but after a conversation with the author himself, I decided to visit him directly in Chile, where the materials and other relevant sources were at the moment.

During the initial phase, I  ordered different books and articles to deepen my understanding of documentary poetics. In addition, I visited at least two important art shows. In September, I attended the closing event for the Exodus series exhibition at WhiteBox Gallery, where I had a conversation with director Juan Puntes and JMA Matriarchive in Resistance’s curator, the artist Yohanna M. Roa. I published a review of this exhibition in Art Review City. Click here to see the full review. 

I attended exhibitions at the Centre for Book Arts, MomaPs1, Whitney and the Sculpture Center, where Chilean artist Ignacio Gatica uses Soto Román’s texts in one of his installations.

In January 2023, during my visit to Chile, I acquired more books and visited important museums: Centro Nacional de Arte Contemporáneo (CNAC Cerrillos), Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes, Museo de Arte Contemporáneo, Departamento Jota, D21. 

Additionally, I went to the exhibition of Soto Roman’s video Borradura in Sala de Máquinas, an independent print workshop that fosters cultural events. Close to the end of my visit, I was able to interview Carlos Soto-Román at his home on January 24th, and recorded a two hour conversation-that I am still working on. I was able to study the Chile project original manuscript (previously but partially exhibited in Valencia), among drafts, books mockups, and talk about the creative process that gave form to the Black Series, the provisory name for a trilogy of books by Soto Román around Chilean Dictatorship and its aftermath.

Recently, I gave a lecture based on my latest research findings, titled “Factographies of violence: Recent Chilean Poetry” invited by Diplomado de Literaturas del Mundo (Certificate Program in World LIteratures) at the Universidad de Chile. The travel allowed me to acquire fresh, current knowledge in the field, have contact with artists and researchers, and gave me the opportunity to attend important events and work directly with primary sources fundamental for my research project. I will continue working on a essay/paper that updates the bibliography related to factographical, documentary productions in Chile, considering new publications and present debate around State violence, censorship and art political; for example, one of my future projects is to finish the catalog for the Censura group exhibition co-curated by me with Vania Montgomery in the Museo de la Memoria y los Derechos Humanos.

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