Leopoldo Méndez a Great Artist of the 20th Century


Tengo Sed  (I Thirst) 1948

"It is a resounding tragedy that the Taller de Grafica Popular  one of the most significant loci of mid-20th century social movement printmaking, is virtually unknown in the United States. This is only partly explained by the usual disability of Anglocentrism; the deeper roots have to do with academia’s discomfort with political activism and with the general lack of scholarship in this country about political printmaking."


Lincoln Cushing, Art Historian, Print Art and Revolution in Mexico



Leopoldo Méndez A Great Artist of the 20th Century


By Federico Correa

 
 For years I have been held in awe by much Latin American Art and its long history. Alas... the awareness of such art and artists was always an outside endeavor away from my college art history classes where narrow-minded eurocentric aficionados dictated the definition of art and the who 's who in art. Nonetheless, I have been struck by  and attracted to Latin American art...... particularly impressed with the  the lusty, muscular approach to image making.  

Recently while online, I came across a familiar printed image.  Where or when I first encountered this particular image I do not know only that it was years ago. Perhaps it was in one of the crumpled newspapers  that accompanied my grandmother on one of her many return trips from Mexico. It was a black and white print by a Mexican artist ...perhaps one by Leopoldo Mendez...a contemporary of David Alfaro Siquieros,  Jose  Orozoco and Diego Rivera.


Leopoldo Méndez 
Photo by Bernard Silberstein 

 Leopoldo Méndez?



"Leopoldo Méndez was one of Mexico’s most important graphics artists and one of the country’s  most important artists from the 20th century. His work mostly focused on engraving for illustrations and other print work generally connected to his political and social activism.  Despite his importance in 20th-century artistic and political circles, Méndez was a relatively obscure figure during his life, and remains so afterwards. The reasons for this generally relate to the fact that he believed in working collaboratively and anonymously for the good of society rather than for monetary gain..... and perhaps because  socialist and communist themes of his work fell out of favor with later generations. However, he has nonetheless received  posthumous recognition with Mexican scholarship considering him  the successor to the great graphic artist José Guadalupe Posada."
Méndez early beginnings were not easy. One of eight children, Méndez was born in Mexico City in 1902.  His  father  was a shoemaker  and his mother  was a farm worker of Nahua indigenous background from the State of Mexico. His parents died before he was two years old. He was subsequently raised by his aunt.


Fusilamoento  (Firing Squad) 1950
Tempered  by his   early tough life experiences, Méndez was part of a generation of  social-conscious artists that emerged during the 1920s who were catalyst  in the culture and politics of Mexico after the Mexican Revolution. His circle of friends  included the who's who of artists, scholars and  politicos of that period.
His Art

Méndez’s  is best known for his engraving work.  His imagery is firmly  rooted in Hispanic, Renaissance and  both European  and Mexican Baroque art , as well as in nineteenth century Mexican art and  Mexican Muralism.

Beyond Méndez's mastery of the his chosen medium, what shines in much of his work is his exemplary sympathy and profound human compassion for the disenfranchised .  From the very beginning and through-out his life, his artistry and his politics reamained as  one and inseparable.  Rich in human pathos,  his intricately scrawled black and white images illustrate  the plight of the poor and the   working class.  Serving  as     indictments  of the social-injustice  that surrounded him,  his work strongly   demands  political and social reform in Mexico and abroad.  


Las antorchas 1947




" Leopoldo Méndez: Voice of Social Justice" 


"Méndez identified himself with the working class and those who suffered from oppression in his country and abroad. Especially the extermination of Jewish people by the Nazis and the countless acts of torture and cruelty during World War II made a strong impression on the artist.  


"His dramatic works are meant to push the viewer to face reality, to be aware of what man is capable of.  Méndez expects the viewer to take a stand, to not be quiet. To stay quiet is to condone an injustice. Through expressive and visually sophisticated images Méndez hopes to provoke change. The artist’s deep commitment to social justice and human rights is reflected in these artworks. They were powerful at the time of their creation, and they continue to resonate and inspire contemporary audiences."  
The latter from an exhibition of Mendez's works at the  The Marguerite and Otto Manley Gallery.

La Venganza de los Pueblos (  Revenge of the People)  1943

 Leopoldo Méndez  lived a life of passion filled with  empathy for his fellow man.   He  died in February 1969  while working on a book dedicated to Mexican handcrafts and folk art. Upon hearing of  the  death of his friend,  Manuel Maples Arce, Mexican poet, writer, art critic  and diplomat  wrote...... "He (Méndez) possessed the precious gift of sincerity, constantly reflected in his conduct and his work."


As stated earlier,  art historians consider  Méndez   one of Mexico's greatest artists   on par with  "Los Tres Grandes".   Sadly, inspite of  this recognition and inspite of  his humanity  toward  his fellowman,  and   vast  artistic and political accomplishments,  he remains in the shadows .

Finally......if it were not for my grandmother's crumpled Mexican newspaper or more recently the internet,  I  would have not known of this great and much overlooked artist. Leopoldo Méndez es un gran aritista y corazon. Es   El Grande...... one of the greatest artists of the 20th century.

Note: For more information about Leopoldo Méndez  and other incredibly accomplished  Mexican graphic artists I strongly recommend visiting the  online site Taller de Grafica Popular. 

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