Sophie Rivera, Untitled, 1978, printed 2006, gelatin silver print, Smithsonian American Art Museum
About this Artwork
Rivera’s monumental portraits of Puerto Ricans in New York (or Nuyoricans) counteract the stereotypes that have circulated in the mass media. The artist found her subjects by asking passersby outside her building if they were Puerto Ricans. If they said yes, she invited them to her studio and photographed them against a dark background. Rivera’s subjects remain anonymous but never powerless. Her direct photographs allow the unassuming individuality of everyday people to speak for itself.
Acerca de esta obra
Los retratos monumentales de Rivera de puertorriqueños en Nueva York (o nuyoricans) contrarrestan los estereotipos que han circulado en los medios masivos. La artista encontró a sus sujetos preguntándoles a quienes pasaban frente a su edificio si eran puertorriqueños. Si decían que sí, los invitaba a su estudio y los fotografiaba ante un fondo oscuro. Los sujetos de Rivera se mantienen anónimos pero nunca desprovistos de poder. Sus fotografías directas permiten que la individualidad modesta de la gente común hable por sí misma.
Video
In this series, E. Carmen Ramos, curator of Latino art, discusses the exhibition Our America: The Latino Presence in American Art at the Smithsonian American Art Museum. This episode looks at two untitled photographs by Sophie Rivera
Our America: The Latino Presence in American Art presents the rich and varied contributions of Latino artists in the United States since the mid-twentieth century, when the concept of a collective Latino identity began to emerge. The exhibition is drawn entirely from the Smithsonian American Art Museum's pioneering collection of Latino art. It explores how Latino artists shaped the artistic movements of their day and recalibrated key themes in American art and culture.