Diego Rivera's historical vision
By Nadia Ugalde Gómez. Excerpt from the book 'Rivera. The Complete Murals'
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The State continued to commission murals for government buildings, hospitals, schools and housing units. During the 1940s, Rivera painted murals in the lobby of the first floor of the Palacio Nacional, in the Instituto Nacional de Cardiología and at the Hotel del Prado. He designed the mosaics for Frida Kahlo’s house in Coyoacán and began building premises to house his collection of pre-Hispanic pieces, which he donated to the people of Mexico, Anahuacalli. In the first few years of the following decade, he decorated the Cárcamo de Dolores, the Teatro de los Insurgentes and the Ciudad Universitaria Stadium. He also painted a movable mural for a European exhibition on Mexican art.
The dialectic of history and social transformation
Rivera was no passive spectator of the times in which he lived. The theory of muralism was that revolutionary art should help awaken the people’s political awareness and incite them to action. Rivera accordingly sought to glorify the Mexican people and democratize art. He said that his goal was to record the history of illiterate people in huge public murals because they could not read it in books. In these works, he created an integrated vision of humanity.
His subject and ideal was the dialectic of history and social transformation. His painting displayed a nationalistic vision (entirely in accord with his own beliefs) and this was well suited to the policies of a government then seeking to redefine the nation and create a national identity. Underlying his contradictory actions was the desire to promote socialism by whatever means were available and to make painting a vehicle for his message of liberation. By the time he undertook the decorations at the Palacio Nacional, the Hotel del Prado and the Teatro de los Insurgentes, Rivera was a practiced muralist. These works differ in structure and composition but share an outlook on Mexican history. They embody Rivera’s interpretation of the historico-social reality of the Mexican people.
In these works, historical events are transformed into images. Humanity and its ideas become as one in their pursuit of ideals and justice. The protagonists are not simply individuals - the celebrated architects of Mexican national identity - but native Mexicans, mestizos, peasants, laborers, the cultures of the past and contemporary Mexican society. The important thing for Rivera was to mould each figure, never sacrificing the part for the whole but organizing the pullulating forms in perfect harmony. In all three murals, form and ideology serve to provide the common people with an illustrated voyage through Mexican history. […]
The splendor of pre-Hispanic cultures
Commissioned by the Secretaría de Hacienda y Crédito Público [Treasury], in 1929 Rivera began decorating the main staircase of the Palacio Nacional and during the 1940s returned to work on the first-floor lobby. The project was inaugurated in 1941 and originally involved 31 frescoed panels arranged around the four sides of the main courtyard between windows and doors. Rivera, however, completed only eleven panels and was unable to work on this project continuously.
Page [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6]
Page [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6]
The State continued to commission murals for government buildings, hospitals, schools and housing units. During the 1940s, Rivera painted murals in the lobby of the first floor of the Palacio Nacional, in the Instituto Nacional de Cardiología and at the Hotel del Prado. He designed the mosaics for Frida Kahlo’s house in Coyoacán and began building premises to house his collection of pre-Hispanic pieces, which he donated to the people of Mexico, Anahuacalli. In the first few years of the following decade, he decorated the Cárcamo de Dolores, the Teatro de los Insurgentes and the Ciudad Universitaria Stadium. He also painted a movable mural for a European exhibition on Mexican art.
The dialectic of history and social transformation
Rivera was no passive spectator of the times in which he lived. The theory of muralism was that revolutionary art should help awaken the people’s political awareness and incite them to action. Rivera accordingly sought to glorify the Mexican people and democratize art. He said that his goal was to record the history of illiterate people in huge public murals because they could not read it in books. In these works, he created an integrated vision of humanity.
His subject and ideal was the dialectic of history and social transformation. His painting displayed a nationalistic vision (entirely in accord with his own beliefs) and this was well suited to the policies of a government then seeking to redefine the nation and create a national identity. Underlying his contradictory actions was the desire to promote socialism by whatever means were available and to make painting a vehicle for his message of liberation. By the time he undertook the decorations at the Palacio Nacional, the Hotel del Prado and the Teatro de los Insurgentes, Rivera was a practiced muralist. These works differ in structure and composition but share an outlook on Mexican history. They embody Rivera’s interpretation of the historico-social reality of the Mexican people.
In these works, historical events are transformed into images. Humanity and its ideas become as one in their pursuit of ideals and justice. The protagonists are not simply individuals - the celebrated architects of Mexican national identity - but native Mexicans, mestizos, peasants, laborers, the cultures of the past and contemporary Mexican society. The important thing for Rivera was to mould each figure, never sacrificing the part for the whole but organizing the pullulating forms in perfect harmony. In all three murals, form and ideology serve to provide the common people with an illustrated voyage through Mexican history. […]
The splendor of pre-Hispanic cultures
Commissioned by the Secretaría de Hacienda y Crédito Público [Treasury], in 1929 Rivera began decorating the main staircase of the Palacio Nacional and during the 1940s returned to work on the first-floor lobby. The project was inaugurated in 1941 and originally involved 31 frescoed panels arranged around the four sides of the main courtyard between windows and doors. Rivera, however, completed only eleven panels and was unable to work on this project continuously.
Page [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6]
Diego Rivera. The Complete Murals
Hardcover, 29 x 44 cm (11.4 x 17.3 in.), 674 pages
$ 200.00
$ 200.00
Diego in detail. The most comprehensive study of Rivera's work ever made
The History of Medicine in Mexico: The People’s Demand for Better Health (detail).
Hospital de la Raza, Mexico City.