She studied in the home of Madame Lasaulce as a child, then lived for three years in Paris with her godparents, Alejandro Bertrand and Mercedes Vidal.
Returning to Chile, she completed her studies at La Serena High school.
[1] In 1919, Cortés enrolled in the University of Chile's School of Fine Arts [es] and was taught by Frenchmen Juan Francisco González and Ricardo Richon-Brunet.
[2][1] Cortés would spend the next three years in Europe, touring museums in Italy, France, Spain, Switzerland, and Belgium,[2] and became inspired by the abstract works of the School of Paris.
[5] In 2015, she had a solo exhibition of over thirty paintings and drawings at the National Museum of Fine Arts.