How did culteranismo differ from conceptismo in Golden Age poetry?

During the Spanish Golden Age, culteranismo and conceptismo emerged as two interrelated, elitist stylistic movements within Baroque literature. While both aimed to communicate with an initiated audience, they differed fundamentally in their focus and execution.1

• Culteranismo: Primarily a poetic style, it sought to elevate language by re-Latinizing it. Led by Luis de Góngora, this movement utilized complex syntax, hermetic vocabulary, and dense classical allusions and metaphors. Its focus was on the ornamentation of language itself, often rendering the work intentionally obscure.123

• Conceptismo: This movement played on ideas rather than language. It was characterized by a concise, aphoristic, and epigrammatic style that favored wit and the stripping away of appearances to reach a semblance of profundity. While culteranismo was ornate and roundabout, conceptismo was sharp and intellectual, finding its most effective outlet in prose, particularly satire and the essay, with Francisco de Quevedo as its primary exponent.13

In essence, culteranismo transformed the medium of expression through linguistic artifice, whereas conceptismo focused on the ingenuity and depth of the underlying concepts.13