1926

Portrait of Tina Modotti

Mexican, 1886 - 1957

Best known for her romantic life as a "femme fatale" actress as well as a passionate political activist, Tina Modotti was a model for Diego Rivera's mural program in the chapel of the Universidad Autónoma at Chapingo during the brief but important period between 1923 and 1930, when she lived in Mexico with the photographer Edward Weston. During these years, Modotti belonged to a group of artists interested in forging a new art based upon Mexican ancient and popular traditions. She ran Weston's studio and became a photographer in her own right, creating clear, sympathetic images of village people and folk art objects. This portrait drawing is based upon Weston's photograph Tina Modotti Reciting Poetry (1924).