San Jose Museum of Art Exhibition Celebrates Master Mexican Photographer June 19, 2005 - September 11, 2005

Caja de visiones/Box of Visions: Manuel Álvarez Bravo is an exhibition of approximately 50 black-and-white photographs celebrating the work of this 20th century master photographer. On view from June 19, 2005 through September 11, 2005 at the San Jose Museum of Art (SJMA), the exhibition highlights work that Álvarez Bravo produced in Mexico from the 1920s through the 1940s, and includes a selection of well-known major works as well as lesser known photographs that have been rarely exhibited.

San Jose, CA (PRWEB) May 19, 2005 -- Curated by the San Jose Museum of Arts Chief Curator Susan Landauer, Caja de visiones/Box of Visions: Manuel Álvarez Bravo is an exhibition of approximately 50 black-and-white photographs celebrating the work of this 20th century master photographer. On view from June 19, 2005 through September 11, 2005 at the San Jose Museum of Art (SJMA), the exhibition highlights work that Álvarez Bravo produced in Mexico from the 1920s through the 1940s, and includes a selection of well-known major works as well as lesser known photographs that have been rarely exhibited. Colette Álvarez-Urbajtel, Álvarez Bravos wife, is expected to attend the opening reception at SJMA on June 18.

At once powerful and lyrical, Álvarez Bravos photographs capture the soul of his native Mexico. A prominent figure who often explored the surreal worlds of fantasy, mystery, spirituality, and the metaphysical, it was his love of Mexico that ultimately lay at the heart of his work: My calling is with Mexico's exterior, or rather with capturing that exterior to explore all the complicated layers beneath it."

Alongside painters Diego Rivera and José Clemente Orozco, Álvarez Bravo played a leading role in the artistic renaissance that flourished in Mexico after the Mexican Revolution of 1910-1920.

His work achieved international stature in 1939 when French poet and critic André Breton—the leader of the Surrealist movement—featured Álvarez Bravos photographs in an exhibition at the Galerie Renou et Colle in Paris. Álvarez Bravos work fit Bretons definition of Surrealist art, although the artist always resisted attempts to annex him into any –ism or movement.

Álvarez Bravo was a friend and peer of several notable modernist photographers who lived and worked in Mexico, including Edward Weston, Tina Modotti, and Henri Cartier-Bresson. And while influenced by their styles, he pursued his own path—one of intense observation, distilling the image into emblems of experience."

The Artist Emerges
Born in 1902, Álvarez Bravo came of age during Mexicos cataclysmic revolution (1910-1920). Against the backdrop of a post-war idealist order, Álvarez Bravo taught himself photography, and at age 21 met the noted German photographer Hugo Brehme, who had come to Mexico on assignment. Brehme taught Álvarez Bravo advanced photographic techniques and introduced him to another German-born photographer living in Mexico, the father of Frida Kahlo, Wilhelm Kahlo. Álvarez Bravo would later photograph Frida creating what was to become one of the best-known portraits of the modern era.

Never reluctant to experiment and explore different photographic styles, Álvarez Bravo became fascinated by city street scenes, signs, vendors, and storefronts. Over time, he refined his unique photographic technique to capture the contradictions between urban life and personal solitude. While the period from 1920 to 1940 is often considered to be the height of Álvarez Bravos career, he continued to produce powerful photographs throughout his lifetime. Álvarez Bravo died on October 19, 2002 at the age of 100.

About SJMA
SJMA is the leading institution dedicated to visual culture in Silicon Valley. It is a community anchor, ensuring artistic excellence and access for an extraordinarily diverse populace. It is a contemporary art center whose acclaimed exhibitions have ranged across modern masterworks to the newest frontiers of art. It is a cultural crossroads, more than doubling its attendance since instituting a free admission policy. It is the largest visual arts education provider in Santa Clara County. It is a source of inspiration, contemplation, and delight for a fast-moving community. It is a Museum of the future.

This exhibition is sponsored by Mrs. Colette Álvarez Urbajtel, SRE (Secretaría de Relaciones Exteriores), DGAC (Dirección General de Asuntos Culturales), Consulado General de México San José California. UnivisionCommunications Inc. is the exhibition media sponsor.

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