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Woman, Patzcuaro

Paul Strand

Artwork Details

Woman, Patzcuaro
1933, printed 1967
Paul Strand
photogravure on paper
15 11/16 x 12 5/16 in. (40.0 x 31.4 cm); ;
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Philip C. Davis through the Friends of the Museum of Art
1971/2.126.6

Description

Subject Matter:

In this photograph, a woman sits with a furrowed brow, looking to the right, out of frame. She wears a dark patterned shawl on her head and shoulders. Her skirt is a lighter checkered pattern, which repeats the pattern of the dark scarf. On her lap sits a square reed basket that appears to contain a light-colored fabric. 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 in Patzcuaro, Mexico. The woman sits with a headscarf draped over her head and shoulders and a basket on her lap.

Usage Rights:

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