Alfredo Zalce
Mexican, 1908 - 2003Los Obreros de Madera (Lumber Workers) from Mexican People portfolio, ca. 1945
Not on view
Lithograph on paper
Dimensions15 1/16 × 17 3/4 in. (38.3 × 45.1 cm)
Image: 11 3/8 × 13 3/4 in. (28.9 × 34.9 cm)
Gift of Mr. Jack B. Pierson, 1987.31.11
For the portfolio introduction, Zalce wrote:
"The large logs of mahogany that arrive at Ciudad del Carmen are brought from the jungles of Chiapas. To transport them there, they are put into the river and towed to the sea, a trip that lasts several weeks. When they are near the beach, the ends are sawed off to make the logs all the same size. Then they are picked up by the boats that carry them to foreign countries such as the United States and Europe. This lithograph depicts the moment when the workers cut the ends of the logs. This work is very wearing because of the primitive conditions under which it must be done, standing in the sea up to the waist, under an exhausting tropical sun."
