A profile of a man with a beard and a hat
ca. 1880–1910
Medium
Woodcut
Dimensions
Sheet: 1 in. × 7/8 in. (2.5 × 2.3 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Jean Charlot, 1930
Accession Number
30.82.76
Tags
Art Historical Context
José Guadalupe Posada, a pioneering Mexican printmaker (1852–1913), created this intimate woodcut portrait, *A Profile of a Man with a Beard and a Hat*, around 1880–1910. Captured in stark black and white on a tiny sheet measuring just 1 × 7/8 inches, the image depicts a bearded man in profile, topped with a distinctive hat. Posada's bold, economical lines evoke the everyday dignity of ordinary folk, reflecting his signature folk-art style rooted in Mexico's popular graphic traditions. As a master of relief printing, Posada produced thousands of woodcuts and metal engravings for newspapers, b...
About the Artist
José Guadalupe Posada · 1852–1913
José Guadalupe Posada (1852-1913) was a Mexican printmaker and engraver who revolutionized popular art and created some of the most iconic images in Mexican culture. Working primarily with publisher Antonio Vanegas Arroyo, he produced over 20,000 images during his career—inexpensive broadsheets sold for a penny on colored paper that made his art accessible to even the poorest workers. He transform...