Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art

About this Work

Influenced by the Mexican muralists, European Surrealists, and the American modernist photographers Paul Strand and Edward Weston, Manuel Alvarez Bravo became Latin America’s first artistic photographer. He used unusual juxtapositions, cropping, and lighting to imbue his pictures with a sense of mystery. Even in his more documentary images, such as this portrait of an indigenous man, there is often an ironic twist or subtle social commentary. Among his favorite subjects were aspects of everyday Mexican life—its people, places, rituals, and folk art. By focusing on the ordinary in a new way, Alvarez Bravo made it seem extraordinary and almost magical.

Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art’s collection includes the complete portfolio (Eskenazi Museum of Art 81.73.1–.15).