Manuel Álvarez Bravo's Solitary Gaze
The Mexican photographer's most recognizable work echoes a dreamy vision of solitude.
A small room sprouts off the side of Yancey Richardson’s sunlit Chelsea gallery, and though it’s about the size of a parking space, it often contains the best stuff. Right now, it holds a suite of nine photographs by the Mexican photographer and modernist titan Manuel Álvarez Bravo.
If you’re unfamiliar with Álvarez Bravo’s work, it’s worth a visit. The show features some of his most famous images, printed during his lifetime, that together echo an erotic, dreamy vision of solitude; all but one depict lone figures. In my favorite, “Los perros durmiendo ladran o Los sueños han de creers (Sleeping Dogs Bark or Dreams are for Believing)” (1966), a little dog naps by himself in the sun, his reclining paws mirroring the diagonal posts of a propped-up fence. Human dreamers likewise abound, sleeping outside, as do beautiful young women who look away from the camera.
