📍Casa del Lector, Matadero Madrid
Until the 15th of September 2026 (free entry)
Born in the same building where her father worked as a ‘portero’ or doorman (Calle de la Espada 17, Lavapiés) Gloria Fuertes García (1917 – 1998) published her first poem, ‘Niñez, Juventud, Vejez’, aged fourteen.
Her first book of poetry, ‘Isla Ignorada’, written when she was seventeen, was eventually published sixteen years later in 1950.
Between 1940 and 1953, Fuertes wrote children’s books, plays, poems, and short stories, many of which appeared in publications such as ‘Arriba’ and ‘Flechas y Pelayos (Maravillas)’.
In 1951, together with María Dolores de Pablos and Adelaida Lasantas, Fuertes founded the group ‘Versos con Faldas’ (Verses in Skirts), at a time when women weren’t really a feature at public poetry recitals.
She later stated:
“Está bien que quede constancia de aquellas muchachitas que en los años 50 (sin porros ni discotecas) nos daba por escribir poesía.”
“It’s good that people remember those young girls who, back in the 1950s (with no weed or nightclubs), were busy writing poetry.” (Loose translation).
A member of the Generación del ’50, also known as the niños de la guerra (children of war), Fuertes regularly contributed to local literary journals, co-founding ‘Arquero’, a poetry magazine, in 1952.
That same year, her first verse play, ‘Prometeo’, won El Premio Valle-Inclán de Teatro.
In 1955, Fuertes met Phyllis Turnbull, an English teacher with whom she shared both a flat and a romantic partner named Chelo Sánchez. According to local media, Fuertes and Turnbull soon fell madly in love.
In a poem, Fuertes later writes:
“Tengo miedo a morir sin haber amado bastante.”
“I’m afraid of dying without having loved enough.”
After studying library science and English in Madrid, Fuertes went on to teach Spanish literature in the United States on a scholarship, eventually returning to her hometown to continue teaching.
From the mid-1970s, Fuertes made a name for herself as a children’s poet on TV shows like ‘Un globo, dos globos, tres globos’, ‘La mansión de los Plaff’, and ‘La cometa blanca’.
Before her death, the poet left one hundred million pesetas (approximately 601,012€) to La Ciudad de los Muchachos in Benposta, the controversial “city-state” founded in 1956 and reportedly governed by children.
Fuertes work has inspired generations of writers and artists within her own country and abroad, including Elvira Lindo, Eskarnia, and Emi Rap. The poet is also seen as an icon within Spain’s queer community, with artists such as Rodrigo Cuevas and Bob Pop citing her as one of their many influences.
#gloriafuertes #versosconfaldas #generacióndelos50 #poesía #amoresprohibidos
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