El caso Los Novísimos: una revolución simbólica específica en la génesis del campo artístico paraguayo / The case of Los Novísimos: a specific symbolic revolution in the Paraguayan artistic field genesis
Authors: Rojas Cardoso Sergio Ramón 
Published: September 2020

El artículo presenta los hallazgos de una investigación hecha sobre el proceso de la génesis del campo artístico paraguayo y el fenómeno de grupos de vanguardia antagónicos, entre los años 50 y 60’s. Se utilizó el sistema teórico de Pierre Bourdieu, cuya puesta a prueba dejó ver que sus conceptos definen, simultáneamente, una interpretación conceptual específica y unas funciones metodológicas precisas en la reconstrucción de casos particulares: por ejemplo, mantener una perspectiva relacional, ejercer la ruptura con las prenociones y los datos preconstruidos, como también estabilizar un modelo analógico para la comparación entre casos ya establecidos. Esto significa que, si bien se estudiaron las propiedades singulares del caso, el objetivo radicó en inscribirlo en una serie de casos históricos semejantes mediante el razonamiento por analogía. El artículo presenta tres dimensiones estrictamente interrelacionadas: a) dimensión epistemológica; b) dimensión histórica; y c) una dimensión de análisis. Las proposiciones teóricas hacen inteligible que las tomas de posición de los grupos Arte Nuevo y Los Novísimos constituyeron unas específicas articulaciones entre la ética, la estética y la política en el arte paraguayo.
This paper shows the research finding of the Paraguayan artistic field genesis process and the phenomenon of the avant-garde antagonistic groups around the 1950s and 1960s. Pierre Bourdieu’s theoretical system was utilized for the purpose of construction and reconstruction: the deployment of concepts in this case showed that they define a specific conceptual interpretation and very precise methodological steps simultaneously. This means that, even if the singular properties of the case have been studied, the main aim resided in inscribing it in a series of similar historical cases through the reasoning by analogy. Furthermore, the logic of the investigation was composed of historical analysis, epistemological vigilance, and socio-analysis for the sake of reaching the rigorousness that characterizes sociology. The paper is structured by three interrelated dimensions: and epistemological dimension; a historical dimension; and a dimension of the analysis.Naturally, the Paraguayan artistic field has displayed singular properties like a particular case. But the heuristical power of Bourdieu’s theoretical propositions has allowed inscribing the Paraguayan case in the model of symbolic revolutions and in the specific struggle which revolved around the proper definition of art that was carried out by avant-garde groups. At the same time, the political context was a fundamental element: as Stroessner’s power was increasing (with the support of international cooperation like Brazil or the United States contributions), local artists, writers, and intellectuals were defining the structure and the autonomy of the cultural production field. Primarily, the importance of the actions of the group called Arte Nuevo was fundamental in the relative rupture with postulates of academic art; but later, Los Novísimos’ irruption played as a trigger of ethic and aesthetic investments that modified the field structure as it was emerging. Results show, on the one hand, the interrelations between ethics, aesthetic and political issues in the Paraguayan artistic field during the historical period studied and, on the other hand, the theoretical force of Bourdieu’s concepts. Finally, the approach applies a dispositionalist theory to study the process of symbolic production.