Braceros
Title
Braceros
Creator
Ulloa, Domingo
Subject
Architecture Exterior — detail — fence
Dress — accessory — hat
Occupation — labor
Mexican
Figure group — male
Dress — accessory — hat
Occupation — labor
Mexican
Figure group — male
Description
Domingo Ulloa's crowd of seasonal laborers, who peer dejectedly through a barbed-wire fence, reinforced mounting public protest against their poor living and working conditions in the 1960s.
The artist painted this canvas after several visits to a bracero camp in Holtville, California. The Bracero Program (1942--64) was a binational effort that brought Mexican guest workers, known as braceros, to fill in agricultural labor shortages caused by World War II.
The painting's composition recalls photographs of concentration camp inmates, with which Ulloa--a World War II veteran--was familiar. Ulloa later stated, "Most of my paintings are inspired by the common people in their work, in their joy, and their struggle."
The artist painted this canvas after several visits to a bracero camp in Holtville, California. The Bracero Program (1942--64) was a binational effort that brought Mexican guest workers, known as braceros, to fill in agricultural labor shortages caused by World War II.
The painting's composition recalls photographs of concentration camp inmates, with which Ulloa--a World War II veteran--was familiar. Ulloa later stated, "Most of my paintings are inspired by the common people in their work, in their joy, and their struggle."
Publisher
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Contributor
Gift of Eugene Iredale and Julia Yoo / Smithsonian American Art Museum
Date
1960
Type
Oil on masonite
Format
36 × 49 in
Identifier
2014.20 (object number)
Source
https://americanart.si.edu/artwork/braceros-86956
Rights
In Copyright
Files
Collection
Citation
Ulloa, Domingo , “Braceros,” Santa Clara University Digital Exhibits, accessed June 21, 2026, https://dh.scu.edu/exhibits/items/show/6001.
Item Relations
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