Who We Are

The Asociación Manuel Álvarez Bravo, A.C. was founded in March 2005 at the initiative of Álvarez Bravo’s widow and two daughters for the photographer’s personal archive to be fully preserved, in optimum conditions, and to remain in Mexico. It is a non-profit organization that has tax-deductible receipts for donations through which support, grants, and donations can be received.

The Archivo Manuel Alvarez Bravo, S.C. was founded in November 2011 in order to optimize and complement the work of the Association. Its four-member team is devoted to conserving and researching the archive of Manuel Álvarez Bravo’s negatives and to spread awareness of his legacy. It offers consultation and advisory services, coordinates projects related to the artist, and ensures the continuation of the legacy of his work.

Both organizations are headquartered in the house in Coyoacán that don Manuel lived in for the last forty years of his life.

We aim to make our work accessible and useful for those who are unfamiliar with it or who know little about Álvarez Bravo’s work, as well as to those who are interested or dedicated to photography as an art form and document.

We also address those for whom, like ourselves, photography in general and the work of Manuel Álvarez Bravo in particular are a part of the cultural heritage of Mexico and the world.

We are aware that the work that we hold is not only extremely valuable, but also fragile. It is our responsibility to protect it and, at the same time, to ensure its use to fulfill our mission.

Our goal is to secure the structure and sufficient resources to fulfill our mission, as well as to offer more and better services. We endeavor to be an organization recognized for its independence, its capacity for development, and long-term viability.

The Archive aspires to grow and be consolidated as a cultural organization that promotes knowledge and enjoyment of photography and that participates actively in the cultivation of the arts in Mexico and abroad.

In 2017 the archive of negatives, documents, and publications of Manuel Álvarez Bravo was inscribed in the UNESCO Memory of the World Programme.