Francisco Díaz de León

Clearly showing the influence of Impressionism, Indias en el mercado is one of the few known oil painting by Francisco Díaz de León, the majority of which were executed at the beginning of his career. This specific piece was created during the period of his studies at the Open-Air Painting School in Coyoacán, under the guidance of Alfredo Ramos Martínez.

In these schools, the important thing was to show the actual Mexico in which the artists were living, without any disguises or cosmetic embellishments. The artists, therefore, went out into the streets to paint what they saw. This artwork is no exception. It shows an everyday scene from the Niño Jesús neighborhood of Coyoacán. The three women appear without any idealization, because the artist’s intention was to show the beauty that exists in life’s simple things and ordinary moments.

For the artists of that period, it was important to show the values of the Mexican people. Therefore, the indigenous figure – the truly native Mexican – became the standard figure of national identity. In this canvas, we see two women of approximately the same age together with one who is notably older – perhaps a mother with her two daughters. The few products they are selling consist of ceramic ware and fruit. This work illustrates very well the positive values that were given to indigenous women in the 1920’s. They were considered to be hard workers, good mothers, and intimately connected with the popular arts.