Art is one of forms of communication used by artists to express their ideas. In addition, it has always been an inseparable part of the process of study historical and cultural heritage of a particular country. Indeed, it is a form of self-expression and self-analysis that artists of all times employed in order to communicate their sacred thoughts to the audience.
During ages, there were many art movements that influenced greatly on public opinion about social situation in a particular country and supported political and cultural movements. One of the most significant art movements that gained great attention of people was born at the beginning of the 20th century in America, and was called Mexican muralism. This movement stands out from other cultural movements, and it is considered to be a second most influential and considerable one after the Italian renaissance.
One of the greatest representatives of this movement is a famous Mexican muralist Diego Rivera (Diego María de la Concepción Juan Nepomuceno Estanislao de la Rivera y Barrientos Acosta y Rodríguezis). His works are among the most valuable cultural heritages of the world culture. They celebrate the culture of Mexican people by means of unique paintings in the Mexican murals. One of the most significant murals that tells a lot about Mexican past, present and possible future is the mural of the National Palace in Mexico City.
The history of the Mexican muralism began in the beginning of the 1920s with the General Oregon administration. It is, “in many senses a long and complex story, full of contradictions and paradoxes, myths and legends. For some, it was an art movement dominated by three main artists of international renown, one which was Diego Rivera.”
At the beginning of the 20s, artists focused on the native traditions of the nation, and murals were the major means of expression because they were accessible to be viewed by everyone regardless class or social position. Governments and businesses provided grants for artists to decorate walls of various institutions, including museums, churches and schools.
The murals were used as a technical apparatus to enhance social and cultural communication, “Mexican muralism is heralded as a public art form and many of the tactic claims for its political impact are predicated on the assertion that murals were broadly available to the people.” The movement was led by David Alfaro Siqueiros, Diego Rivera, and José Clemente Orozco. They are called the fathers of the movement and “los tres grandes”.
The artists were among the first ones who saw the significance of murals as a strong means of communication their ides to broad public, they “chose this technique as the best one to reach more people because of a mural’s public location.” The works by these artists became the first originally authentic works that represented traditions and culture of Latin America:
“Along with the stories and descriptions brought by the first American travelers regarding the backwardness of life in the region, they created an imaginary place, untouched by modern progress, only inhabited by indigenous people that based their sustenance on traditional agricultural activities: an image that has been pervasive throughout the 20th century.”
Mexican muralism had a great influence on American art. In this regard, we can talk about two forms of influence, artistic and ideological. On the one hand, forms, use of colors and themes used by Mexican muralists became a foundation for the modernist movement in the United States after the 1940s; on the other hand, they provoked interest to national traditions and ideology of freedom.
These days, the period when Mexican art became very popular in the USA is sometimes called “Mexican invasion”. The techniques used by artists were adopted from the period of Italian renaissance, but they put national traditions of Mexican people into its context. This period is often called “Mexican renaissance” because it had a great impact on peoples’ ideological views and attitude to the better world.
In order to understand general cultural context of the Mexican murals, we should find out about its roots. After the Mexican Revolution of 1910, Mexican people rebelled against political dictatorship of the past years. During the years 1920 – 1930, the process of political consolidation the works by Mexican artists received a great attention from the critics. They were not only the means to celebrate the national history, but often provided the scenarios that promoted struggle for peoples’ rights.
Moreover, the main aim of many mural artists was to encourage government to care about the citizens, provide education among lower class citizens and enhance the standards of living. The artists were considered to introduce popular art into masses. It can be said that Mexican mural art was created and nursed by Mexican Revolution:
“Mexican artworks were the first objects from Latin America that received attention in the U.S. In the mid 1920s, reviews in American art magazines such as The Art News and The Art Digest reported that in Mexico a new School of Painting had been born along with the National Revolution.”
In this light, it is obvious that Mexican mural art has a very deep cultural context. Through the pictures and images, the artists tried to educate people about their cultural heritage and thus, this art became a part of national history, trust and “song” of the Mexican fight against inequality:
“The populists claim on behalf of muralist routinely associate the aesthetics and politics of muralism with the desires and aspirations of the Mexican people. In many ways, the defense of muralism against its detractors has been lodged as a defense of the Mexican people.”
As it has already been mentioned, Mexican muralism was a form of expression, and at the same time a provider of cultural traditions, political views and social moods in the country that influenced greatly on the further development of the Mexican art, and made a great contribution to the development of the art of the United States.
Diego Rivera is considered to be one of the most famous and influential Mexican artists. His art serves a great source of information about history of his native country, life of the American people and their hardships. His main intention was to make art accessible to everyone, not only to rich people. That is why, he painted in public places so that his massage could reach the public:
“The Mexican artists have produced the greatest national school of mural painting since the Italian renaissance. Diego Rivera tells that it was possible because Oregon allowed Mexican artists to work for plumbers’ wages in order to express on the walls of the government buildings the social ideas of the Mexican revolution.”
Rivera worked in Europe, the United States and Mexico. Almost all of his works were inspired by Mexican national traditions and connected the culture of the modern Mexico with its national roots. He referred to ancient Indian cultural traditions, and true heritage of Mexican people. His works affected all social classes. He is not only an artist, but a great lecturer who, created much critique and many scandals on the media, but still, he was very popular among people of all social classes:
“He is a muralist, illustrator and promoter of populist publications, while simultaneously being a womaniser, an inconsistent militant, the man of jolting political shocks, the Cubist, Trotskyite and supporter of the Soviet Union and China. He is a materialist unsure whether his thinking is based on philosophy or economics; but also a historian engaged in synthesizing images of the Pre-Columbian past.”
In his works, he expressed a great commitment to his people, his nation and history.
He suggested that awareness of the national history and its major figures is the best way to encourage people for ideological struggle for their freedom and unique national identity. Rivera provided a popular ideology and was one of the founders of the journal El Machete. This was a journal where all Mexican painters and sculptors could express their political view.
The works by Rivera were a mixture of his political, personal and artistic ideas. Among his most famous works are Labors of the Mexican People for the Ministry of Education in Mexico and Mural of the National Palace in Mexico City.
The last one presents the history of Mexico beginning with the fall of the Teotihuacan, and ending with the year 1935 associated with the presidency of Lazaro Cardenas. A major theme of the mural is to celebrate the revolutionary traditions that led to freedom of the nation and glorify the indigenous roots of the Mexican people.
The author divided the picture into three main sections: the first one depicts the country of the Prehispanic period and culture of the ancient people who inhabited the area, representing the precortesian civilization; the second part depicts the conquest of the year 1521; and the third part is the interpretation of the fight for the independence. With this work, the author not only wanted to show the history of the country, but give a way to his political views.
The banner “land and freedom” in the hands of Emiliano Zapata (a famous revolutionist) is the main motto of the author. All the components of the mural are placed in harmony with each other. Regardless the fact that they are far from each other historically, they are united by the same context; the context of freedom, independence, national identity and cultural heritage.
Thus, we can see that Diego Rivera is a considerable figure in the history of Mexican art. He was one of the first artists that made art accessible to all social layers and attracted the public attention to Mexican culture and national traditions. His works were provocative and critical.
Along with works of other Mexican mural artists, they are considered to make a major break in the Mexican influence on the American art and were the foundation of new movement in the contemporary mural art. Fortunately, we can still admire them and learn about great history of a great country engraved in stone and immortalize by the hand of a great artist.
Bibliography
Coffey, Mary Katherine. “Muralism and the People: Culture, Popular Citizenship, and Government in Post-Revolutionary Mexico.” Communication Review 5, no. 1 (March 2002). Communication & Mass Media Complete, EBSCOhost .
Metzger, Philip W. The Art of Perspective: The Ultimate Guide for Artists in Every Medium. New York: North Light Books, 2007.
Rochfort, Desmond. Mexican Muralists: Orozco, Rivera, Siqueiros. San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 1993.
Serrano, Alberto Híjar. “The Latin American Left and the Contribution of Diego Rivera to National Liberation.” Third Text 19, no. 6 (2005): 637-646. Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost .
Serviddio, Fabiana. “EXHIBITING IDENTITY: LATIN AMERICA BETWEEN THE IMAGINARY AND THE REAL.” Journal of Social History 44, no. 2 (2010). MasterFILE Premier, EBSCOhost .