Tina Modotti. Donna, Fotografa, Militante. Una vita fra due mondi (Tina Modotti, Woman, Photographer, Activist. A life between two worlds)

The exhibition Tina Modotti, Woman, Photographer, Activist. A Life Between Two Worlds, which opens in the Piano Room of the Museum of Rome in Trastevere, tells the life and work of the Italian-American photographer, actress and political activist through about 60 photographs, letters, texts, documents and articles.

The works on display illustrate the path of this woman, a photographer of Mexican social reality, as well as a figure of great importance who unites Italian and Mexican culture, placing her in the context of the cultural environments of the time and of the Mexican Communist Party, until the last photos taken during her exile in Berlin in 1930. There are also many documents helping to illustrate the human and political events of Tina Modotti in the last phase, which saw her as a member of the Communist Party, as well as a leader of the International Brigades of Red Aid, until her death, which occurred in Mexico City in 1942 at only 45 years of age.

Tina Modotti (Udine, 1896 – Mexico City, 1942) was a multifaceted and representative artist of the 20th century; she emigrated to the United States as a young woman, initially working in a textile factory before moving to San Francisco, where she had a brief experience in theater and cinema. In San Francisco she met the photographer Edward Weston, who became her companion and mentor. In 1923 she settled with him in Mexico, immersing herself in the context of the artistic and political environment after the revolution. It was in this period that she developed a peculiar photographic style, characterized by compositional rigor in dealing above all with social themes. Tina Modotti joined the Mexican Communist Party in 1927. Her photographs, ranging from still lifes to portraits of workers and activists, reflect this growing political commitment, where she came in contact with leading figures such as Diego Rivera, Frida Kahlo and Siqueiros. Expelled in 1930 for her political activities, she lived in Berlin and Moscow, collaborating with the international communist movement; starting in 1936 she took part in the Spanish Civil War with the International Brigades, as a nurse and propagandist. After the defeat of the Republicans, she returned to Mexico under a false identity. She died in 1942 in unclear circumstances, officially of a heart attack. Her photographic production, re-evaluated only posthumously, today consecrates her as a pioneer of social photography and an artist who promoted political commitment through art.

The exhibition is promoted by Roma Capitale, Department of Culture, Capitoline Superintendence of Cultural Heritage and organized by the association Storia e Memoria Aps of Albano Laziale, in collaboration with the Secretariat of Culture of the Government of Mexico, the archive of the National Photo Library of INAH. Media partner NOIDONNE, museum services Zètema Progetto Cultura.

Photo credits: Flag, 1928, the National Photo Library Archive of INAH