Hombre

Date:  c. 1924-25

Medium: Woodcut

Dimensions (cm.): 27.0 x 16.9

Alternate titles: Unknown

Published edition: Unknown. Méndez [1949?] gives number of impressions as 20 approx.

Contemporary publication: Unknown

References: Exposición de Homenaje 365 (illus,.); Méndez INBA 85

Selected additional references (illustrated): Caplow 2017, 53; Carillo 1984, pl. 21; Poniatowska 1963; Reyes Palma 1994, pl. 3

Commentary: Méndez’s first-known woodcut print, Hombre of  1924 or 1925, is one of the most abstract of his Stridentist images. The figure fills the pictorial space, truncated hands obscured by feathery shapes, feet cut off at the bottom edge of the image. His bowed head and bent back are criss-crossed by two diagonal lines, which suggest the form of a pillory. Using this rough, spare technique, Méndez here alluded to the Crucifixion, and in this print he expressed themes of suffering, sacrifice and struggle against oppression that would be his major preoccupations throughout his career. (Deborah Caplow)

Cataloging note: Méndez [1949?] refers to this print as “mi primer grabado”  and gives date as 1924.

Catalogue record number: 547