Collecting Latin American Art Portfolios: Rivera and Mérida

A regional category helps find material, but the publication and the particular copy remain the basis for comparison. The Breething Books catalog includes portfolios associated with Diego Rivera and Carlos Mérida whose contents call for different descriptions.

Rivera: reproduced fresco images

The 1946 Mexican Frescoes portfolio is cataloged with ten loose color reproductions and Justino Fernández named in the title. The sheets present mural imagery in a portable format. They should not be described as the original frescoes or assumed to be individually signed prints.

Compare each image with the accompanying title and text material. Count sheets, check for duplicates or substitutions, and record damage individually. Our Rivera portfolio notes explain which details are documented and which require the copy’s own evidence.

Mérida: plates and publisher’s housing

The Trajes Indígenas de Guatemala listing describes ten color lithographs issued by Byron Zadik y Cía. in Guatemala, with a printed portfolio cover, publisher’s box and purple cord. The catalog’s date is approximate; retain that qualification when comparing another example.

Assess the plates separately from the cover and box. Surviving housing helps describe the copy, but does not replace a sheet-by-sheet contents check. Do not infer a limitation, signature or precise publication year from the artist’s name or a decorative cover.

Build a comparison record

Record title, date as documented, publisher, image process as described, sheet count, accompanying matter, housing and condition. Keep unresolved facts as questions. Check the item pages for current availability; these collecting distinctions remain useful after a copy sells.

Explore Latin American Art, Prints & Portfolios, Diego Rivera and Carlos Mérida. For a practical comparison checklist, read Checking a Portfolio’s Completeness.