Tennis Palace Art Museum

The Mexican Renaissance

An exhibition of photographs by the Italian-born Tina Modotti opened to the public at the Helsinki City Art Museum's Tennis Palace galleries on September 12, 2000 focused on the period from 1923 to 1930 when Modotti lived in Mexico.

Tina Modotti (1896-1942) was a factory worker, bohemian beauty of the jazz era, silent-screen actress, artists' model, muse for both Edward Weston and Diego Rivera, devoted communist, revolutionary and first-generation modernist photographer. Her wide and cosmopolitan circle of friends included Frida Kahlo, Manuel Alvarez Bravo, Julio Antonio Mella, Pablo Neruda and Sergey Eisenstein.

Tina Modotti's career as a photographer began in Mexico in the 1920s. This was the time of the Mexican Renaissance, when artists explored Mexico's Indian cultures and traditions in search of an authentic and original Mexican identity. Modotti's photographs of peasants and workers demonstrate a deep sensibility that is complemented by their simple materials and clear form. She was a member of the Communist Party and her photos were published in Mexican left-wing magazines such as El Machete and Mexican Folkways and also in international left-wing and Avant-Garde magazines.

In 1930 Modotti's life took a dramatic turn when she was expelled from Mexico on false pretences. In the 1930s she lived in Germany and the Soviet Union, was a spy in France and fought in the Spanish Civil War. Although she stopped photographing in 1931 to dedicate her time and efforts to the Communist movement and politics, her images continued to be published in, for example, the Soviet press. Despite her rather brief career, Modotti is considered one of the principal early modernist photographers. To the legendary photographer Manuel Alvarez Bravo, Tina Modotti was an idol.

Exhibition curated by Patricia Albers and Sam Stourdzé. Produced by NBC.