Today, July 27, 2023, Google commemorates in its daily Doodle the outstanding poet and official Ramón Modesto López-Velarde Berumen, known artistically as Ramón López-Velarde for his 135th anniversary of his birth.
The Doodle is inspired by Mexican culture and the works of the poet.
At the age of 33, López-Velarde left a remarkable literary legacy that led him to be nicknamed “The National Poet” due to his outstanding contribution to the modernist movement.
Born on June 15, 1888 in Jerez de García Salinas, Zacatecas, from an early age he showed an innate interest in poetry and literature. His talent led him to achieve fame within Mexican literary circles, where he stood out for his lyrical and evocative style.
In addition to his passion for poetry, he also became actively involved in politics, openly supporting the reforms proposed by Francisco I. Madero, whom he had the privilege of meeting in person in 1910.
In 1912, Eduardo J. Correa, former protector of López-Velarde, called him to collaborate in the prestigious Catholic newspaper “The Nation” of Mexico City. In this publication, the poet wrote several poems, reviews and political articles in which he was even critical of figures such as Emiliano Zapata.
Although he left the newspaper before the uprising of 9 February 1913 in the capital, which brought to power Victoriano Huerta, López-Velarde sought refuge from the unrest in San Luis Potosí, where he established his law firm. During this time, he also fell in love with Maria de Nevares, whom he would court throughout his life, although they never married.
Finally, at the beginning of 1914, he settled definitively in Mexico City. It was at this time when Venustiano Carranza toplunged the leadership in Mexico, and began a period of relative calm in the country.
Despite the dominant influence of the postmodernist Enrique Gonzalez Martinez in the Mexican poetry of those years, López-Velarde showed his preference for the poet José Juan Tablada, with whom he maintained a cordial friendship and shared literary affinities. In addition, the work of the Argentine Leopoldo Lugones It had a significant impact on the work of the Mexican poet.
