Accession Number
1971/2.126.19

Title
Young Woman and Boy, Toluca

Artist(s)
Paul Strand

Artist Nationality
American (North American)

Object Creation Date
1933, printed 1967

Medium & Support
photogravure on paper

Dimensions
15 3/4 in x 12 3/8 in (40 cm x 31.4 cm)

Credit Line
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Philip C. Davis through the Friends of the Museum of Art

Subject matter
This is a double portrait of a young woman and boy from Toluca, Mexico. The subjects stand against a wall with peeling white paint. The woman stands with her back turned toward the young boy, her head turned toward the camera. She furrows her brow and clasps her hand around her shawl, which is draped over her shoulders. The boy looks from beneath his straw sun hat, directly toward the lens. The boy's white shirt collar is visible beneath another layer of clothing, perhaps a poncho. 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 young woman and a young boy. They lean against a wall and look toward the camera.

Primary Object Classification
Photograph

Collection Area
Photography

Rights
If you are interested in using an image for a publication, please visit http://umma.umich.edu/request-image for more information and to fill out the online Image Rights and Reproductions Request Form. Keywords
Mexico
boys
double portraits
hats
modern and contemporary art
shawl
shawls
shirts (main garments)
sun hats
wall components
women (female humans)