Diego Rivera's Murals of Mexico

I don't think I have ever really appreciated art before, but since being in Mexico I have found a new fascination for it. Particularly the murals painted by Diego Rivera. Walking around museums has never been my favorite past-time, in fact I usually find it a bore. Upon walking into the Palacio Nacional (National Palace) for the first time last week I was overcome with awe, as I struggled to draw my eyes away from the huge murals painted by Rivera. I found that I could look at these murals for quite a while, and found it so hard to pull myself away.

This is the first mural seen when climbing the interior steps of the Palacio Nacional. Due to the size of the mural, we were unable to get a clear photograph of the whole thing in one shot.















This mural painted by Rivera shows the history of Mexico. There is so much to this mural that I am not entirely sure what to say about it. The mural tells a story of Mexico, beginning with the eagle on the cactus. This represents the great prophecy of the Aztec people, and is now the national emblem of Mexico. The mural takes you through the story of the conquest of Tenochtitlan, the colonial period, the independence of Mexico, the American invasion, the laws of reform, the French invasion, and finally the Mexican Revolution. The longer you look at this mural the more there is to discover.




To the left and right of this huge masterpiece are two smaller murals. The one to the left shows class struggle in Mexico, and my favorite piece of this mural is the bottom section, where the evolution of the working man in Mexico is depicted climbing the stages to the left.









At the top of the stairs, there is a corridor of murals also painted by Diego. It begins with a picture of Aztec civilization, in particular the different aspects of market life, and in the background old Mexico City. Mexico City was built in the middle of a massive lake, that had several aqueducts providing fresh water.



(Again, the mural was so big we could only capture about a third of it)

Along the corridor followed numerous murals of the different states of Mexico, showing off certain characteristics such as dyes, arts and crafts, and sports. The final mural in the corridor of the Palacio Nacional demonstrates Spanish influence in Mexico. There is an Indian woman carrying a blue-eyed baby on her back in the foreground of the mural, demonstrating the mixes of the two races.




After many hours of starring at these murals, finding it hard to pull ourselves away, we made our way to the Palacio del Bellas Artes (Palace of Fine Arts), to check out some more artworks. Many Mexican artists were featured at the Bellas Artes, but it's no suprise that more of Rivera's work stole the majority of our attention.







The mural featured below is titled "Man, Controller of the Universe". Unfortunately due to it's size we weren't able to capture the whole piece, but the mural shows the social, political, industrial and scientific possibilities of the 20th century. The mural also contains a huge worker's demonstration waving red flags, with Lenin as their leader. The original version of this painting was on show in New York, and caused huge controversy due to Lenin's portrait. In 1934 it was destroyed and carted away in wheelbarrows. On return to Mexico City, Rivera claimed that it was 'cultural vandalism' and re-painted the entire mural. It is now placed at the Palacio del Bellas Artes.