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The Fruit Vendor

A work made of gouache, over graphite, on white wove paper laid down on white wove paper.
© Tamayo Heirs / Mexico / Licensed by VAGA at Artists Rights Society (ARS), NY

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  • A work made of gouache, over graphite, on white wove paper laid down on white wove paper.

Date:

1943

Artist:

Rufino Tamayo
Mexican, 1899-1991

About this artwork

Rufino Tamayo and his wife, Olga, settled in New York in the 1930s, dividing their time between the United States, Mexico, and later Paris. The artist developed his mature style in the 1940s; he was strongly influenced by the work of Pablo Picasso that he saw in New York. Tamayo had been encouraged by his maternal aunt to join the family fruit business while still a teenager, and he turned to that subject in this gouache. The artist also began to dedicate works to his wife—who had suffered a series of miscarriages in 1942–43—around this time, inscribing them with an O, as in the inscription here, O-43. The bounty of fruit balanced by the expressionless, masklike figure may have held private significance for the couple in addition to representing a Mexican subject and style.

Status

Currently Off View

Department

Prints and Drawings

Artist

Rufino Tamayo

Title

The Fruit Vendor

Place

Mexico (Artist's nationality:)

Date  Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

1943

Medium

Gouache, over graphite, on white wove paper laid down on white wove paper

Inscriptions

Signed, lower right: "TAMAYO / O-43"

Dimensions

73.8 × 58.2 cm (29 1/16 × 22 15/16 in.)

Credit Line

Bequest of Elizabeth F. Chapman

Reference Number

1981.151

Copyright

© Tamayo Heirs / Mexico / Licensed by VAGA at Artists Rights Society (ARS), NY

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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