Graciela Iturbide (Mexican, b. 1942). "Mascaras" (Masks) black and white photograph, 1992. A wonderful photograph by Graciela Iturbide who is among the most celebrated Mexican photographers of our time. The piece presents a crowd of people who are wearing festival masks, presented dramatically close to the picture plane. Inspired by Mexican photographer Tina Modotti, Graciela Iturbide was driven to photograph various indigenous peoples and their cultural practices. The Mexican tradition of mask-making has existed for more than 3,000 years - used in the Pre-columbian world for ritual, and still featured today in village festival dances. Size (sight view): 16.5" L x 11.875" W (41.9 cm x 30.2 cm) Size of frame: 24.75" L x 18.75" W (62.9 cm x 47.6 cm)

According to the artist's website, "Graciela Iturbide was born in 1942 in Mexico City. In 1969 she enrolled at the age of 27 at the film school Centro de Estudios Cinematograficos at the Universidad Nacional Autonama de Mexico to become a film director. However she was soon drawn to the art of still photography as practiced by the Mexican modernist master Manuel Alvarez Bravo who was teaching at the University. From 1970-71 she worked as Bravo’s assistant accompanying him on his various photographic journeys throughout Mexico. In the early half of the 1970s, Iturbide traveled widely across Latin America in particular to Cuba and several trips to Panama."

Iturbide's work has been exhibited at the Centre Pompidou (1982), San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (1990), Philadelphia Museum of Art (1997), Paul Getty Museum (2007), MAPFRE Foundation, Madrid (2009), Photography Museum Winterthur (2009), and Barbican Art Gallery (2012), just to name a few. Her honors include the W. Eugene Smith Memorial Foundation Award (1987); the Grand Prize Mois de la Photo, Paris (1988); a Guggenheim Fellowship for the project 'Fiesta y Muerte' (1988); the Hugo Erfurth Award, Leverkusen, Germany (1989); the International Grand Prize, Hokkaido, Japan (1990); the Rencontres Internationales de la Photographie Award, Arles (1991); the Hasselblad Award (2008); the National Prize of Sciences and Arts in Mexico City (2008); an Honorary Degree in photography from the Columbia College Chicago (2008); and an Honorary Doctorate of Arts from the San Francisco Art Institute (2009). (source: artist's website)

Provenance: ex-William and Jane Frazer, Aspen, Colorado, USA, acquired July 18, 2001; ex The Mayans Gallery, Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA

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#166672

Photograph has not been examined outside the frame but appears to be in excellent condition, as is the frame. Exhibition labels on the verso as shown.