Distribution of Land 1937

Luis Arenal made this linocut print, Distribution of Land, with ink on paper. The whole scene is rendered in shades of black and white, except for the cream color of the page itself. Imagine the artist carving away at the linoleum, a bit like cutting a potato print in elementary school, but with way more at stake. There’s a crowd of people gathered, waiting for a man in a hat to show them something on a rolled-out map. You can feel the energy of the group, hopeful but wary, as they stand together, their faces a study in anticipation. I wonder what Arenal was thinking as he carved each figure, each line and shadow. Did he imagine their lives, their dreams, their struggles? The way he’s used the white of the paper to create a kind of glow, it reminds me of José Guadalupe Posada, the master of Mexican printmaking. Artists are always riffing off each other, you know, like a visual conversation across time. This image shows painting is a way of experiencing the world, embracing ambiguity and uncertainty, and leaving space for endless possibilities.