Diego Rivera,Frida Khalo and the avant -garde artists.

Mexique 1900-1950 gives you a wide range of the Mexican art scene of the first half of the 20th century,a period known for the Mexican school of painting and its most prominent movement , Muralism:an aesthetic which sought to bring art closer to the common people.

Art in Mexico before the Revolution

The government of the restored Republic in 1867 ,found its legitimacy in the assertion of a common history.The artists illustrated the national pride through all sorts of expression as history, portraiture and costumbrismo(the description of everyday life,mannerism and customs).

At the same time , there was an effort for Mexico to gain recognition on the world stage through art nouveau with a symbolist theme well known in Europe.

The art Academy of San Carlos promoted its most promising artists by sponsoring a major tour of Europe ,as a result of which many artists spent a period of their lives in the old continent.

A part of their experience can be seen in the interest artists as Rivera and Angel Zarraga had in cubism to which they added their personal notes.

Diego Rivera:from left to right:the woman at the well..Zapatist landscape.Portrait of Adolfo Best Mauregard.(1913)

Angel Zarraga : the septentrional Mexican border and the horn of plenty.1927 and Diego Rivera:portrait of Ramon Gomez de la Serna.

The Mexican revolution had a huge impact on the country’s composition ,affecting politics ,history and culture.The armed conflict claimed thousands of lives and changed the total structure of the nation and its aesthetic expression.

The nationalism became institutionalised in art and the minister of Public Education José Vasconcelos suppoorted mural art as a way to convey the revolutionary message.

The traditional life of the Mexican people was glorified in all sorts of artistic expression ranging from paintings , sculpture and murals.

The beautiful exhibition gives us many exemples of these new forms of art.

Francisco Díaz de León – Indias en día de mercado .1920

From left to right:the red sarape.Alberto Garduno.1918.Indian from Oaxaca. Ramon Cano Manilla.1928.The parakeet girl.Carlos Merida.1917

Diego Rivera.The molendera.1929

the boat .Rivera.1931. the arum seller.Rivera.1931

The river Juchitan.Diego Rivera.1953

Strong women

From left to right:Olga Costa.1947.Selfportrait.RosaRolanda.1932.Self Portrait.1952.Diego Rivera.Portrait of Dolores Olmedo.1955.

From left to right:Frida Khalo.self portrait with short hair.1940.Self portrait.the frame.1938.The two Frida.1939.

Surrealism

Mexico city became a geographical reference for modern artists who were seeking refuge from the political persecutions which struck Europe in the 1930’s and 1940’s.In 1940 , the international Surrealist Exhibition took place in the Galeria de Arte Mexicano.

Works from European surrealist artists were displayed along with Pre-hispanic and modern Mexican works .

From left to right:Wolfgang Paalen.Toison d’or.1937.The birth of Venus.Juan O’Gorman.1976.The messenger.Wolfgang Paalen

The little art seeker recommends you this beautiful exhibition in Paris that will bring you the Mexican colors.