In June and July 2024, Iberarchivos presented the personal archive and library of Dora Isella Russell, a prominent Uruguayan writer and cultural manager. This valuable legacy was donated to the Catholic University of Uruguay as a testamentary bequest by the author herself.
The collection includes handwritten and typed letters, documents, approximately two thousand volumes of books, postcards, photographs and personal objects. Among these objects is a leather folder with a gold-embossed metal cover, which belonged to the poet Juana de Ibarbourou. This folder was given to Dora Isella, as evidenced by a handwritten note dated December 1947.
Dora Isella Russell’s correspondence and documents offer a profound insight into the intellectual and cultural life of Uruguay and Ibero-America in the second half of the 20th century. Her interaction with figures such as Juana de Ibarbourou, Carlos Sabat Ercasty, Carlos Vaz Ferreira, José Luis Zorrilla de San Martín and Margarita Xirgu highlights the richness of the cultural exchanges of the time.
The Dora Isella Russell collection not only preserves the memory of a key figure in Uruguayan culture, but also facilitates access to documents that enrich the understanding of the literary and cultural history of the region. The digitisation and dissemination of these materials allows researchers and the general public to explore and value this heritage.
AUTHOR OF THE TEXT
Dr. Amalia Lejavitzer
BIBLIOGRAPHY
- Anderson Imbert, E. (1970). Historia de la literatura hispanoamericana (Vol. 2). Fondo de Cultura Económica.
- General Association of Authors of Uruguay (2000). Biographical catalogue of Uruguayan authors.
- Pickenhayn, J. O. (1994). The poetic work of Dora Isella Russell. Barreiro y Ramos.
- Riefkohl, G. (1982). The ways of love in the poetry of Dora Isella Russell.
- Sánchez, L. A. (1974). Historia comparada de las literaturas americanas. Losada.
- Torres Rioseco, A. (1972). Nueva historia de la gran literatura iberoamericana. Emecé.
NAME OF THE IBERARCHIVOS PROJECT
“Dora Isella Russell” first phase in the rescue, documentary treatment, digitisation for accessibility and dissemination of documents”.
Photographs:
-
- Carpeta de cuero con tapa metálica repujada en dorado, perteneciente a la poetisa Juana de Ibarbourou
-
- Juana de Ibarbourou sentada frente a su carpeta donde escribía. En el reverso, aparece escrito a lápiz 1941
-
- Nota manuscrita de puño y letra de Juana de Ibarbourou que se conservó en el interior de la carpeta. En la nota la poeta cede la propiedad a su amiga Dora Isella, fechada en diciembre de 1947
-
- Dora Isella Russell y el escultor José Luis Zorrilla de San Martín en su taller, ubicado en el barrio montevideano de Punta Carretas, junto a la casa paterna, en 1949. En la imagen se alcanzan a distinguir algunos bocetos de José Gervasio Artigas, prócer de la independencia uruguaya
-
- Nota al dorso
-
- La gran actriz y directora teatral catalana, Margarita Xirgu, en fotografía dedicada de su puño y letra a su amiga Dora Isella Russell, con “admiración y sincera amistad”, después de una función en 1961
-
- Dora Isella Russell brindando una conferencia. Ca. 1947-1950