Jardiniera (Gardener)

Jardineira (Gardener) Is a Brazilian Woodblock print by artist José Francisco Borges.  

The woodblock prints of northeastern Brazil began as an offshoot of a folk art known as “literatura de cordel” or string literature.  For centuries, folk poets roamed the countryside telling stories of historic events and selling their transcribed poems with woodblock print covers to rural audiences.  

José Francisco Borges was an herb seller, bricklayer, farmhand, carpenter, and potter before becoming a poet and woodblock print artist.  He is now one of Latin America’s most celebrated artists and his work is exhibited in museums around the world including the Louvre and Smithsonian.