Retrato de lo Eterno (Woman Combing Her Hair)

1932-1933, printed 1977

Manuel Álvarez Bravo

Associated Names
Manuel Álvarez Bravo

Artist, Mexican, 1902 - 2002

The image shows a woman seated on a wooden floor, with her body captured from the knees up. She is sitting with one leg bent and the other positioned under her, and she is adjusting her long, dark hair that falls over her shoulder and down her chest. The woman’s face is softly illuminated as she looks towards her hand. Her hair is long and voluminous, highlighted by light. She is wearing a light-colored, patterned garment that covers her legs and shoulders. Her left hand is raised to her head, and her right hand is in front of her, partially hidden by her hair. A ring is visible on her left hand, catching the light. The background is dark, with a beam of light falling across the wooden floorboards.
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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    gelatin silver print

  • Credit Line

    Corcoran Collection (Gift of Raymond W. Merritt)

  • Dimensions

    image: 23.81 × 19.05 cm (9 3/8 × 7 1/2 in.)
    sheet: 25.4 × 20.32 cm (10 × 8 in.)

  • Accession Number

    2016.22.58

  • Portfolio Title

    Photographs by Manuel Alvarez Bravo


Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Raymond W. Merritt, New York; gift to the Corcoran Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, 1979; acquired by NGA, 2016.

Associated Names

Inscriptions

on verso, signed by artist, lower right in graphite: M. Alvarez Bravo. / México.; bottom right corner: 81/100; by Corcoran Gallery of Art, bottom right: 1979.86.5

Wikidata ID

Q64157706

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