The Criminal, Victoriano Huerta, Takes Possession of Power El Criminal, Victoriano Huerta, Se Aduena del Poder

Date

1941

Creator

Matarlos en el Calor and El Criminal, Victoriano Huerta, Se Aduena del Poder are two of the images that Alfredo Zalce contributed to the folio Estampas de la Revolución Mexicana. The two prints in the Charles S. Hayes collection, however, were not produced for the published book. They are printed on thicker white paper, whereas the published series was printed on rather thin multicolored paper. These two editions were most likely made before the establishment of the TGP [Taller de Gráfica Popular] publishing company and the publication of the Estampas. […] El Criminal, Victoriano Huerta, Se Aduena del Poder exemplifies the morbid cynicism typical of Zalce’s work. This print portrays the dictator Victoriano Huerta sitting in an imposing chair, with a menacing army of men bearing knives, guns, and rifles behind him and two men lying slain at his feet. Zalce creates an effectively pernicious and malevolent characterization of Huerta by surrounding him with shadowy figures that look out at the viewer. Huerta had usurped the Mexican government from President Francisco Madero, who was subsequently murdered—a fate that many rivals of Huerta shared. Zalce depicts the dictator as a drunkard, with legs crossed and eyelids drooping. Already inebriated, he grips his throne with his right hand and holds a bottle in his left —a visual expression of his immorality and unjust usurpation of power. from Costa, Para la Gente: Art, Politics and Cultural Identity of the Taller de Gráfica Popular (Notre Dame, 2009)