The Trinity of Scoundrels (or the Shameless Trinity) from 'El Machete'

David Alfaro Siqueiros Mexican

On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 692

The first issue of the labor-focused El Machete included this separate broadsheet with a satirical ballad written by Graciela Amador, Siqueiros’s wife. The "unholy trinity" is anchored at center by a Mexican politician. At the left is a characterization of an Anglo-American imperialist paired with the inscription "I plunder the world," and at far right is a European capitalist (a former worker) with the label "I am the Iscariot" (Judas). These large prints were pasted up on the street, where, unlike murals—many of which were hidden inside government buildings—they provided cheap and visible art for the masses.



El primer número de El Machete, centrado en el mundo laboral, incluyó esta hoja volante independiente con un corrido satírico escrito por la esposa de Siqueiros, Graciela Amador. En el centro de la «trinidad de los sinvergüenzas» vemos a un político mexicano. Junto a él, a la izquierda, se representa a un imperialista angloamericano con la inscripción «Saqueo al mundo». A la derecha aparece un capitalista europeo (y antiguo obrero) con el rótulo «Soy el Iscariote». Estas estampas de gran tamaño se pegaban en la calle y, a diferencia de los murales —muchos de los cuales estaban ocultos en el interior de edificios gubernamentales—, suministraban arte barato y visible a las masas.




For the second part this this Corrido see 30.14.11.

The Trinity of Scoundrels (or the Shameless Trinity) from 'El Machete', David Alfaro Siqueiros (Mexican, Camargo 1896–1974 Cuernevaca), Woodcut and letterpress on purple paper

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