Article 24 - The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (English version)

This piece is part of a collection of 30 xylographs, produced by the multimedia artist Otávio Roth (1952-1993), that graphically express the content of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948). The series took two years to reach completion, with each piece printed on handmade paper created by the artist himself. Driven by the desire to democratize access to the Charter, Otávio Roth synthesized its message in graphic pieces that facilitate the understanding and memorization of the Charter’s content.

Roth was the first living artist invited to exhibit at the United Nations. His prints have been on permanent display at UN headquarters in New York, Geneva and Vienna since 1981. In addition to the English series, the artist produced other series in Japanese, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Norwegian and Danish, using techniques as diverse as crayon, watercolor and pulp painting.

About Article 24
Article 24 introduces the other side of the right to work articulated in Article 23 - the right not to be overburdened. Limitations on working hours and the right to rest are not mentioned in the main human rights conventions, but were introduced in the first treaty adopted by the International Labor Organization (ILO) in 1919, applying a limit of eight hours per day and 48 hours per week of work in industry. Article 23 owes much to the contributions of Latin American countries to the document drafting process, between 1946 and 1948. By the mid-1940s, almost all the countries in the region had democratic governments and constitutions rich in economic and social rights, including annual vacation time and other forms of paid leave.