Graciela Iturbide

Graciela Iturbide

Some may call her a legend and others may call her one of the most gifted photographers to come from Mexico. There is no doubt that Graciela Iturbide is a very talented woman. Born in Mexico City in 1942, Iturbide did not find a strong interest in photography until her early twenties. At the age of twently Graciela married and started a family with three children. In 1970 Graciela lost her six year old child. Some say because of this horrible incident Graciela “reassessed her life’s purpose” and pursued her interest in photography from the influence of her daughter (Catherine Edelman Gallery). In 1962 she attended the University of Cinematographic. At the university she was taught by Manuel Alvarez Bravo (one of Mexico’s greatest photographers) and in 1970 he invited her to be his assistant. A strong bond grew between Manuel and herself as they traveled through the small villages in their country to create photographs of the culture and people.

Iturbide is considered a contemporary photographer. She maintained her contemporary style throughout her entire career and continues to do so. Many of her photographs are from the culture of Mexico. Just recently she has expanded her work to other cultures. She has begun to focus on “the modern culture of American south” (Edelman Gallery). “The kinds of movies I would’ve wanted to make wouldn’t have been possible within the confines of commercial Mexican cinema.”-Graciela Iturbide (Elgrably). From Iturbide’s work comes symbolism. Many of her photographs show the cultural aspect of her home, Mexico. According to Edelman’s Gallery her photographs show “a visual story of culture through identity, sexuality, festivals, rituals, daily life, death, and the role of women.” To find many of these photographs Iturbide’s work is shown in various galleries throughout the world. Resources from The Side Collection state the numerous exhibitions; including “The Museum of Modern Art, San Francisco, The Museum of Photographic Arts, San Diego, United States of America; and most recently the 'Images of the Spirit' (tour and catalogue); Philadelphia Museum of Art, 1998; 'Cuaderno de Viaje' , Museo Carrillo Gil, Mexico City 1999; Museo de Arte Moderno, Buenos Aires, Argentina, 2000; 'India-Mexico', Museo del Antiguo Colegio de San Ildefonso, Mexico City, 2002, Graciela Iturbide, Andersen Gallery, Rome, Italy, 2002”. Other galleries that show Iturbide’s work are the Galeria Lopez Quiroga and the Kurimanzutto Gallery. “But many things are implicit in the work that I do. For me photography is writing, it is history; it can be aesthetic, it can be many things though it does not have to be art.”-Graciela Iturbide (Elgrably).

Graciela Iturbide is very important to photography because she does not just take photographs she portraits the culture of her country through them. She teaches the viewer something about Mexico every time they