Don Chepito
1891-1899
Medium
relief etching on pink paper
Dimensions
sheet: 25.4 × 22.86 cm (10 × 9 in.)
Classification
Department
CG-E
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Gift of Christopher and Beverly With in memory of Karl and Gerda With
Accession Number
2013.135.6
Art Historical Context
José Guadalupe Posada's *Don Chepito*, created between 1891 and 1899, captures the satirical spirit of late 19th-century Mexico through a relief etching on vibrant pink paper. Posada (1852–1913), a pioneering Mexican printmaker, was renowned for his bold, black-line illustrations in popular broadsheets and newspapers. These works often lampooned social elites politicians, and everyday life, humor with sharp social commentary—a hallmark of his folk-inspired style that foreshadowed Mexico's revolutionary graphic arts. The relief etching technique, where ink adheres to raised surfaces on a metal...
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...