Antes del Arte in Spain (1968–1969): Merging Art, Science and Politics in the Heat of the Cold War

Abstract

This article concerns Antes del Arte, a vanguard Spanish art group that existed from 1968 to 1969. Through specific examples, the author explains the group's history and theoretical basis as well as its artistic production. Discussing the references taken from contemporary aesthetic scientific theories, the author analyzes the substantial theoretical framework that the art critic Vicente Aguilera Cerni introduced into the group's manifestos. Finally, she addresses the specific role that the interactions between the artistic and the scientific fields had in the context of Spain's Franco regime.