Label Type
Cultural/Historical ContextLabel
"The work El Pollero by Alfredo Zalce seems almost to be by another artist entirely when compared to the other work by Zalce in this exhibition En la Hamaca. At first glance the image is somewhat disturbing. The figure, while captivating, seems to be more fantastical monster than man. However, upon closer inspection and with help from the work’s title, the chaos of forms covering the entire midsection the male figure can be identified as chickens hanging from the man’s shoulder as he strides forward.
Made nearly twenty years after En la Hamaca, El Pollero shows a far more sketchy and expressive style than Zalce’s earlier work. The precise and meticulous treatment of line is not present in this work. This is due to the freedom in draftsmanship the drypoint technique not only allows but demands. The artist is able to draw on a metal plate using a very pointy metal stylus which is much like drawing with a pencil, except that the resistance of metal against metal is far greater than that encountered when using a pencil on paper. The treatment of the figure is also much different than in En la Hamaca in which the figures are realistically rendered. The form of the chicken vendor is made of a jumble of rhythmic, chaotic lines. There is no recognizable background and the only sense of depth to the composition is achieved through the vendor’s shadow below and behind him.
It is evident that Zalce’s style evolved drastically over time, moving farther away from the realism of his early etchings and murals to a more expressive, geometric style. This is in contrast to the very clean, commercial aesthetic of the Pop Art and Minimalist movements of the time. Another work from his later career which shares this new expressive quality is titled Rapto (Rape) dated 1969. At first it is difficult to discern where the figure of the woman and the figure of the man begin and end. The figures of the woman and man are also comprised of chaotic lines like that of the chicken vendor and the sense of depth is created using the figures shadows rather than placing them in an identifiable setting.
While there seems to be no sinister activities going on in El Pollero, unlike in Rapto, there is still a sense that something is not quite right. The empty stares of the dead chickens swinging from the vendor’s shoulders are unnerving. Unnerving also is the hard, almost wraith like look of the vendor himself, with dark narrowed eyes and his ragged pants. The vendor is rendered on a massive, monumental scale. He takes up the entire composition almost threatening to break free from the picture plane.
Both El Pollero and Rapto evoke an emotional response from the viewer due to the expressive style in which they are done. Many of Zalce’s works, even those concerning everyday Mexicans, were often social commentaries, pointing out the flaws of Mexican society. During the 1960’s the number of commercial super markets were on the rise. This means that the traditional role of the vendor would be obsolete in the rapidly modernizing world making the chicken vendor a dying breed, a ghost in a changing landscape.
Allie Brandt"