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Woman and Baby, Hidalgo

Paul Strand

Artwork Details

Woman and Baby, Hidalgo
1933, printed 1967
Paul Strand
photogravure on paper
15 3/4 in x 12 3/8 in (40 cm x 31.4 cm)
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Philip C. Davis through the Friends of the Museum of Art
1971/2.126.15

Description

Subject Matter:

In this double portrait, a woman sits on a concrete ledge. She wears a shawl draped around her shoulders, a light striped dress, an apron, and sandals. On her right sits a young baby in a straw sun hat. Next to them, on the right side of the frame, sits a large pile of rolled textiles. The woman looks toward the left side of frame. Strand used a prism lens to disguise his intentions when photographing his human subjects during his time in Mexico. In order to capture his images of people his lens directed the light at a right angle, while appearing to shoot from the front.

This photograph is from Paul Strand's The Mexican Portfolio published in 1967 by Paul Strand. The portfolio consists of a series of 20 images depicting Mexico's people, architecture, landscape, and churches. It was first published in 1940 under the name Photographs of Mexico, and reprinted under Strand's supervision in 1967 as The Mexican Portfolio.

Physical Description:

This is a photograph of a woman resting on a ledge, against a building wall. She sits with a young baby. To the woman's right is a large pile of rolled textiles.

Usage Rights:

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