Diego Rivera: Painting A Revolution
Table of Contents
Introduction
Beginning: This is an introductory text.
Diego Rivera
The upheaval in Mexico between 1910 and 1920.
Post-Revolutionary and the Beginnings Of The Mexican Muralist Art Movement
Rivera’s Murals and Their Subjects
Rivera’s Political Perspectives
Political Impact of Muralist Movement
Rivera’s Influence on America
In conclusion
Bibliography
An initial statement
Art from the Medieval to the Modern era has always had politics as a theme. People have used the canvas and various mediums throughout history to communicate with one another and express their approval or disapproval about those in power. Art for the people. The artwork’s subject often critiques institutions and social connections within the society. Picasso in Guernica (1931), Warhol (1972) and Banksy (Rage, the Flower Thrower (2006) all show how a visual representation can have an impact on society in order to catalyze change. These artists were symbols that helped to communicate and unify the thoughts of everyone else. Diego Rivera, a Latin American muralist, is an excellent example of the transcendence and power of art over politics. Rivera was created in Guanajuato Mexico in 1886. His art studies were mostly completed overseas and were heavily influenced and inspired by Picasso, Cezanne, and other classical representations. Rivera was inspired by large-scale mural paintings and fresco after he returned from Mexico. The political relationships between government and citizens were shaped by the Mexican Muralist Movement, which ran from 1920-1950. The murals were a source of information for the Mexican state as well as its citizens. Diego Rivera is one of lostres grandes, the ‘three great ones,’ which includes Jose Clemente Orozco and David Alfaro Siqueiros. Mexican murals are now political tools that serve all levels of the hierarchy, promote national identity, and bring about change.
Diego RiveraRivera was the son of a criollo father and a mestiza mother. He was raised in a Mexican family. Rivera, a teacher by profession, was the first to notice Rivera’s passion early in his life. He studied European painting methods in Mexico when he began school. The Academy of San Carlos, Mexico City’s top-rated and most important art school, was where he studied. In 1903, he was temporarily expelled from the school because he had participated in a demonstration against President Diaz. After graduating, he was able to travel across Europe, including France, Spain, and Italy. His love of classical art and fresco was discovered in Italy. He loved the freedom of mural art and its potential. It was also open to all. Rivera returned home to Mexico in 1923. He began work under the Obregon government’s patronage. Diego Rivera was an accomplished muralist artist who created works such as Creation (1922) or The History of Mexico (1929-1935), which both summarized the Mexican struggle under colonial rule. Frida Kahlo was a Communist Party member and fellow painter. They were passionate, but their marriage would be fraught with difficulties. Her art was also a tribute to the indigenous Mexican population. It featured two images of her, one wearing traditional colonial clothing and one wearing indigenous clothes. Diego Rivera discovered a way to integrate the pains and strengths of Mexican people into socially realist murals across Mexican cities. The Mexican Revolution. In order to fully understand Diego Rivera’s impact and history, you need to learn about the Mexican Revolution. Without the historical context, Rivera’s works would have no meaning or purpose. Mexico was divided when the Mexican Revolution took place in 1910. The first was Porfirio Diz (1876-1910) who led the ruling upper class elites. The second group was the lower classes that were abused and suffered inequality and injustices during the Porfirian rule (Orozco, 2014). The colonial system of la encomienda, which was a feudal-type system for the lower working class citizens, was still in place. The people wanted their work to be rewarded and they were able to enjoy the results of their hard labor. While the Porfirio dictatorship was successful expanding Mexico’s industry sector and economy, it failed in acknowledging the growing wealth gap and neglected to provide care for those who were less fortunate. In the north, Francisco “Pancho”, Villa was the leader and Emiliano Zapata was the one in charge of the troubled masses. The Zapatistas advocated for greater representation and land reforms. Liberals began to challenge the Porfirio government, which was in effect a violation the Mexican Constitution. It had existed for 34 year. Many rebellions led by peasants as well as rebel troops removed Diaz’s presidency. Mexico would struggle for stability over the next years, as it was difficult to maintain stability in politics and economics. The Mexican Muralist Art Movement’s Beginnings after the Revolution. The Constitution of 1917 enacted agrarian reforms, and gave workers important rights. These rights were misused during the Porfirio diaz dictatorship, also known as the Porifiriato. Venustiano Carranza, who was elected president following the revolution was assassinated. Mexico then experienced years of instability. Alvaro Obregon was elected the first president democratically in the new era. Plutarco Elias Cales followed him. Calles established the National Revolutionary Party (1929), which then became the Institutional Revolutionary Party(PRI). PRI remained the dominant party in Mexican politics for 70 years. Post-revolution, the government that was elected had to keep its promises. Jose Vasconcelos, President Obregon’s Minster of Education, was instrumental in accelerating the support of artists in Mexico during the 1920’s in order to fund communal building projects and the renovation of the educational system. The government’s sponsorship of the arts gave the opportunity to more people access to education and helped rebuild Mexico after the revolution. Rivera, at the same moment, starts painting public murals. Rivera joins the Central Committee of Communist Party. Rivera’s personal interests and those of the committee and union are evident in his artwork, which can be found on walls of hospitals, universities, and other public buildings. It is important to look at two schools that developed in Mexico after World War II. One promoted indigenismo and advocated the superiority mestizaje, which is the mixing and blending of colonial/indigenous races and their culture. Cultural appreciation exploded with the publication of literary and political essays, muralist art, and the development of music styles like corrido. Manuel Gamino wrote Forging the Fatherland (1916), explaining the first school. This piece dealt with cultural assimilation of Mexican Indians into other sections of Mexican society. His writings were a challenge to liberal thought. Gamino believed that integration would not affect the socio-political, economic, and political lives of indigenous peoples. Jose Vasconcelos’s essay was the inspiration for the second school. His essay The Cosmic Race (1925), claimed that Mexico would benefit from the mix of its races and the growing mestizaje-class. Obregon government funding allowed for the unification and restoration of a country that was broken by the Mexican Revolution as well as the injustices that came before it. The Mexican Muralist Movement, which was founded in 1923, became a symbol of national change. Rivera, Siqueiros, Orozco, and others signed the ‘Manifesto of Union of Technical Workers, Painters, and Sculptors’ in 1923. The group’s ideals were then embodied in their art. It said:
“We support the claim that beauty-creators must work hard to make their art a visible part of ideology propaganda for the good and benefit of all people. We believe they should create beauty not just for aesthetics’ sake, but also for social purposes. . . The art of Mexicans is the greatest and most vital spiritual expression of the world. . .”. The group sought to create art in order to change the Mexican people’s perceptions of their country, their history, and their oppressors. Mural art was the most powerful and effective way to do that. The Muralists had a social realist focus and sought to create a national identity by using symbols of ideologies and political ideas. They challenged capitalist ideas and created a new appreciation of working class culture. The mural paintings reached a broad audience. Diego Rivera was determined to make mural frescos in Mexico. He was able paint paintings that were realistically representative of Mexican workers, peasants, and landscapes, all while keeping the mural’s aesthetic. He wanted to convey the Mexican Revolution’s social ideas to his viewers. Ironically, however, the state funds an anti-state artist. Relations between the government and muralist painters were controversial. The government provided the space for the murals to be painted. However, the direct artists were responsible for the artwork. These ideas are sometimes accepted and sometimes they are not. Rivera had to work for both the government as well as the Communist Party of Mexico. He wanted both his constituents to be happy. Conflicts resulted from divergent interests and ideologies. The space was used as a platform for protest and to provide relief for the masses by muralists. It increased the consciousness of the people to resist authoritarian power abuses, fascism and imperialism as well as the exploitation of lower-class citizens. The goals of the muralists was to reach the people and encourage them to be more politically and socially active, in order to change the social and governmental hierarchies in Mexico. The Muralist Movement artists had a harsh view of the government’s actions and how they were being used. Rivera, Siqueiros and Orozco set the goals for many other muralists. The Subjects Of Rivera’s MuralsRivera’s aesthetic and ideology were greatly influenced and influenced by Porfirio Diaz’s government and subsequent Mexican Revolution. He wanted the revolutionaries, the people and the condemnation to the regime to be his subjects. His subjects featured the socialist revolution. They also condemned conquistadores colonialists. Rebellions against imperialism and capitalism. His works were indictments about the abuses and pain that occurred under PorfirioDiaz’s regime. Rivera would portray scenes of Karl Marx and exploitation-based conflicts, as well as workers being oppressed. All subjects allowed Mexican citizens a chance to relate, regardless of their commonality in race or gender. Orozco 2014). He was critical of the concentrations of power and authority in Mexico’s government. His idealistic views of society influenced his art. He depicted scenes of integration and everyday life, and he celebrated the Mexican multiethnic roots. He frequently depicts people as more powerful than life. In a time when this function was not so common, he expresses sympathy to the poor and oppressed workers. We are not made to feel bad for the people he depicts, instead we are encouraged to be more appreciative and dignified by his bright, natural colors, beautiful flow and curved shapes. Rivera shows that art can serve a dual purpose: it can be politically relevant and also beautiful in its artistic sense. Rivera was able to show the beauty of Mexico and its people and to create a way to make the art form a national tongue. His work was meant to be seen by all and everyone. Rivera created his own Positivism through the juxtapositions between science, art and technology (Serrano 2005). His paintings were designed for a broad audience. He was a communist and attacked the capitalist elite, the Catholic church, and the capitalist society. All three of these were major institutions that were placed in Mexico’s colonial period. These three frameworks played a crucial role in shaping Mexico’s modern future. His murals were history lessons, as well as a visual guide to the present and past of Mexican life. Rivera believed in technology’s potential as a way to bring about equality. But it must not be controlled by the capitalist state. Rivera was a visionary who wanted art to become part of factories, films, and technology. Examples of his portrayal of harmony between technology, man and nature can be seen in murals he created in the United States. The Political Beliefs of Rivera. Many of the revolutionary artists’ views were influenced by the events of the 20th century. Mexico’s Communist Party was established in 1919. It replaced the failings of the previous authoritarian government. The revolution continued as other Communist revolutions took place around the globe. This was the perfect time for communist ideas and thoughts to spread throughout Mexico. Smith 2017, citing the fertile environment for radical ideas and revolutionary movements to grow in Mexico. Post-revolutionary Mexican politics saw the rise of the Communist Party. This development was essential for the Mexican Muralist artists to be able to influence and reach the masses with their proletariat ideas. Mexican muralism is one of the most important examples of Leftist ideology in modern art. It was designed to reach the masses. They were deeply involved in the Mexican revolution, popular struggles and unmet social justices. Many artists experienced the hardships of the Porfirio regime. Many Mexican artists joined Party because they wanted to continue the revolutionary principles inherited from the Mexican Revolution. Diego Rivera, a Mexican Communist Party member (PCM), joined the party in 1922 following the Mexican Revolution. The party and Rivera would have conflicts because he found it difficult painting and working for the Party. After he worked alongside the government, he was eventually allowed to return. Rivera was a great friend of Leon Trotsky. Rivera was a shining example of unity between communist theory and the arts. The Political Impact on the Muralist MovementThe Muralist Movement played a role in creating a unified Mexican nation. It served as a powerful educational tool to promote political politics. It provided an opportunity for people who had never been able to experience historic culture at the same scale as a mural. Rivera’s portrayals helped to secure nationalist identity. These murals were revolutionary in that they made a political statement, but they also didn’t get privatized. The murals could not be sold or bought, and were instead open for everyone to see. In rural areas, a larger percentage of the working-class were illiterate. It was up to intellectuals or artists to promote national liberation (Serrano, 2005). Rivera’s works are meant to inspire both the illiterate classes and those who remain elitist. Rivera’s work aimed to highlight the hardships and difficulties faced by people living in capitalism. Rivera argued that people were not seen as individuals but as numbers in an impersonal, industrial system (Daniels 2012). Rivera helped to create El Machete, the journal which first served as an outlet of the Painters’ Union and the Sculptors Union. Later, El Machete would be the Mexican Communist Party’s outlet. His writings and paintings focused on the people and their nation. His symbols were critical of exploitation and bourgeoisie, as well the colonization of Mexico and socialism. In the sense that his pieces represent the exploited peoples in Latin America and Mexico, they are also emotional. His frescos show such raw emotion. The Mexican Muralists were able create a new nation identity and to celebrate the Mexican Revolution’s values through revolutionary media. Muralism became an art form that was popular among the proletariat. It was popular with the working class masses. The Mexican Muralist revolution functioned as a populist organization that was not limited by the government’s capabilities. The government sponsored the murals. However, they help to establish a national identity and include those who were previously excluded or marginalized. The government chose this method of integration because it was strategically strategic. Rivera’s Impact on AmericaHis Communist sympathizer art choices were not received well. His murals, which became increasingly controversial following a visit to the Soviet Union, 1927, were taken down or censored. Man at the Crossroads, a mural painted by the Rockefeller Capitalist Family in the United States, was meant to reflect culture and science and show the relationship between capitalism & communism. Rivera refused the removal of a Lenin portrait. This mural was unsurprisingly anti-capitalist. Rockefeller ordered it to be destroyed. It was quite easy for the Mexican art movement to make its way to America. The New Deal Works Projects Administration in the 1930s allowed government-sponsored art to be implemented. WPA programs were created to create work for the unemployed, improve infrastructure, and educate the arts. The Mexican muralism movement’s influence spread to Argentina, Chile, Cuba and Germany. Rivera and the paintbrush won out over the oppressors. Many Mexican Muralists were successful in creating a sense of culture identity and a nation. In every work, there was a demand for justice for Mexicans and civil rights. The murals were a further defeat to the PorfirioDiaz regime. Instead, they placed greater respect on the people as the worker, peasant, and indigenous citizen. They all were portrayed with beauty and strength. After a long period of time that was lost, Mexicans were able to appreciate their culture through visual dialogue. The three-great muralist was one of many narrative tools that were used to educate and free the people. Diego Rivera’s murals were used as political tools during an unjust era in Mexico to inspire and build a Mexican nation. Although many art topics are subject to change and depend on their context, one theme remains constant throughout history: politics. Art will remain a forum for political debates as well as an expression medium. Artists continue to communicate their disapproval or approval through art pieces that make political statements. Their artwork serves to incite, motivate, and inspire much like the Mexican muralists did after the Mexican Revolution. Bibliography
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Banwell, Julia. In Teresa Margolles and the Aesthetics of Death, the topic of Mexican art and Mexicanness is discussed, with the focus being on Margolles’ work (166-88). University of Wales Press, 2015. http://www.jstor.org.pallas2.tcl.sc.edu/stable/j.ctt17w8h95.10.
Carter, Warren. 2014. Third Text 28 (3): 282-91.
Mary K. Coffey. How a revolutionary art became official culture: Murals, museums, and the Mexican state. Durham, NC. Duke University Press publishes books.
Mary Ke, Mary Coffey 2002. Communication Review 5 (1): 7.
Daniels, Anthony. 2012. “The Murals Of Diego Rivera.” New Criterion 30, (8): 50-55. http://search.ebscohost.com.pallas2.tcl.sc.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=74651205&site=ehost-live.
Orozco Lopez, Leticia. 2014. Third Text 28 (3): 258-68.
Serrano, Alberto Hijar. 2005. Third Text 19(6): 637-646.
Smith, Stephanie J. Smith, Stephanie J. CHAPEL HILL: University of North Carolina Press, 2017/ http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.5149/9781469635699_smith.
Wolfe, Bertram D. 1947 “Diego Rivera-People’s Artist” The Antioch Review, 7 (1): 99-108 https://www.jstor.org/stable/4609195
Vazquez, Adolfo Sanchez. 2014. Third Text 28 (3): 269 – 70.
