The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of August 16, 2026

A horizontal gelatin silver print depicts two mounds of dark earth against a rough, textured wall. On our right, a dome-shaped framework of arched branches draped in frayed white paper strips covers a mound, topped with a small cross. To our left, a smaller mound holds a simple wooden cross. A plant with white blossoms grows in the lower-left corner. Strong light from our left casts dark shadows across the soil.

Tumba reciente

1933, printed 1974

Manuel Álvarez Bravo

(Mexican, 1902–2002)
Mexico
gelatin silver print
Gift of Alan and Monah L. Gettner 2023.197.14
Location: Not on view

Did You Know?

It is the artist’s personal outlook and cultural heritage that unify the disparate subjects photographed by Manuel Alvarez Bravo.

Description

Manuel Alvarez Bravo sought to represent the viewpoint of Mexico’s Indigenous cultural heritage and its peasants as he chronicled their encounter with the country’s rapid modernization. His work is often considered Surrealist, but he never formally identified with that art movement. The odd juxtapositions, occasional humor, and quixotic viewpoint of his images may derive from growing up in a culture that contains both Indigenous and European traditions.
  • ?–2023
    Monah Gettner, Hyperion Press, Ltd., New York, NY, given to The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
    December 4, 2023–
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • {{cite web|title=Tumba reciente|url=false|author=Manuel Álvarez Bravo|year=1933, printed 1974|access-date=16 August 2026|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2023.197.14