On the occasion of March 8, the International Day of Working Women, Clara Alarcón, historian and technician at the Museum of the City of Murcia, has visited us to talk about a relevant illustrator in the region during the 1920s.
Luis Gil de Vicario He was an illustrator, designer and an “influencer” of the time, who brought modernity through the press and publications (almanacs, party programs, etc.) to our city; modernity that was taken away by the terrible event in the history of our country that delayed us with respect to the rest of Europe by some 40 years until the transition.
Clara Alarcón has told us about the concept of “modern woman” how well Gil de Vicario knew how to illustrate. A female model not always well received by the streets of our city, which by then appeared in representative cities such as Paris and Vienna mainly. modern woman she was an enlightened, independent woman, who had time for herself and her social life, traveled, read and dressed in a more dynamic style. She had short hair, straight and simple dresses, with a masculine touch, she was upper middle class y It contrasted with that stereotype extended by Catholic morality of a mother as an angel of the home, a mother, a wife fully dedicated to the domestic sphere.
Gil de Vicario portrays this new woman in his illustrations for press and covers, sometimes combining the traditional with more modern elements.
Times have changed but not all the work is done, we still have a long way to go until women can show up and live with total independence, eliminating the gender stereotypes that put so much pressure on our modern lives.
