La Presa

La Presa — Elizabeth Catlett. 1952.

Medium: Linocut on gray laid paper. Dimensions: Image: 45.2 × 37.4 cm (17 13/16 × 14 3/4 in.); Sheet: 63.8 × 48.5 cm (25 1/8 × 19 1/8 in.).

Collection record: Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago. Museum connection according to this source; current display unverified.

This print, La presa (The Dam) , is representative of work Elizabeth Catlett produced for the Taller de Gráfica Popular (People’s Graphic Arts Workshop) to celebrate Mexicanidad (Mexican revolutionary spirit) and social and economic progress. This specific print is part of a series created to laud the achievements of Lázaro Cárdenas’s presidency: in this case, building a dam and channeling environmental resources into impoverished areas of the country, spreading electricity and improved education throughout Mexico. The print was produced for a government-sponsored conference and was exhibited there.

Description: © Art Institute of Chicago, original record, CC BY 4.0. HTML formatting removed; wording retained. Other artwork metadata: CC0.

Source: official collection record. Metadata selected and normalized by Artline from the source export, accessed 10 September 2026; no museum endorsement. Reproduction rights are separate.