diego rivera, the beginning · •the mural was meant to be on the ground floor of rockefeller...
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diego rivera, the beginning• Diego Rivera was born in Guanajuato, Mexico in 1886.
• He was an imaginative child who loved animals.• He spent a lot of time in the forest with his pet goat
• He claimed to make friends with all the animals—even the dangerous & poisonous ones
Hurry up and take the photo—I’ve got poisonous animals to train to do my
bidding.
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diego rivera, the beginning• As he grew older, Diego began drawing• He loved to draw inventions he created in his imagination and parts of his toys that he took apart
• He drew everywhere—including the walls!• His father covered an entire room in canvas for him
Self Portrait (1907)
I don’t always paint self portraits.
But when I do, I’m smoking a pipe and having
a beer.Stay thirsty,
amigos.-Diego Rivera
The Most Interesting
Muralist in Mexico
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A 10 year old with a plan• Diego decided he would be an artist at the age of 10• He was very stubborn and there was no changing his mind
• He was an excellent student & his parents sent him to the San Carlos Art Academy in Mexico City• He learned how to draw & paint
• He learned techniques of the great artists of Europe The Bullfighter (1909)
There was something
missing from the curriculum at the art academy:Mexican
Art
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And the Mexican artists?• Diego found his own teacher to learn about Mexican art.
• He watched José Posada create drawings and prints at his shop• Posada created energetic depictions of Mexican legends, unlike anything Diego had ever seen
• He also created political cartoonsGran Calavera Eléctrica (Grand Electric Skull)
by José Posada, 1900-1913
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The mood in mexico• During the time Diego was growing up, the Mexican people were suffering• Not enough money to live/enjoy life
• Few people could read
• Many people lived like slaves
• The government wasn’t working
• As Diego grew up, this bothered him more and more
Collage of Mexican Revolution (Wikipedia)
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Rivera on the riviera• At the age of 20, Diego left for Europe.
• He befriended famous artists like Pablo Picasso & Amedeo Modigliani• Their works influenced Diego’s
• He was doing well in Europe, but knew something was missing…
House Over the Bridge (1909)
Europe loves me—big deal. I
want more.
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The people’s artist• Diego did not like that his work was only being enjoyed by the well-educated, wealthy people
• He believed that art was meant for everyone—especially the poor, working people• Art could teach them about their past & give them hope for the future
The Arrival of Cortés (1951)
So, I’m not sure Cortes
was the hero he’s
made out to be.
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Italian inspiration• The walls of Italian churches are decorated with frescoes—large paintings direct ly on the wall for everyone to see
• Diego knew his purpose• He would return to Mexico and make the same type of paintings for ALL people to enjoy
The History of Mexico (1929-1935)
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The mural man• Upon returning to Mexico, Diego was asked to paint a large mural for a prominent school.
• Tit led, Creation, the mural is 23 feet x 39 feet
• Everyone LOVED it!Creation (1922-1923)
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The mural man• Requests for more murals came pouring in
• Diego created his own style, more Mexican in feeling (not European)
• Other artists like David Siqueiros and José Clemente Orozco began creating murals in Mexico
The Flower Seller (unknown)
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Art as social commentary• Diego painted leaders who were fighting to improve things in Mexico
• Some people didn’t agree with the political paintings & would throw rocks at the murals & the artist!• Diego eventually armed himself for protection
The Uprising (1931)
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Rivera in america• In the 1930s, Diego was invited to paint several murals in the US
• Detroit Industry is on the walls of the art museum in Detroit Michigan• He found beauty in the machinery as well as the people
Detroit Industry (1932-33)
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Rivera don’t care-a• One of Diego’s murals, Man at the Crossroads, was literally torn off the wall in the US
• He insisted on painting Russian revolutionary leader, Vladimir Lenin, who was unpopular in the US• Diego Rivera was a lifelong member of the Communist Party Man, Controller of the Universe (1933-34)TEAR IT
DOWN!
GET OUT,
COMMIE!GO HOME! BOO!
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Rivera don’t care-a• The mural was meant to be on the ground floor of Rockefeller Center in New York City.
• Diego had been concerned that Rockefeller might destroy the work, so he had an assistant take photos.• He recreated a smaller replica of the mural, retit led Man, Controller of the Universe, at the Palacio de Bellas Artes in Mexico City
• The new version contains Vladimir Lenin, Leon Trotsky, Karl Marx, Friedrich Engels, (all associated with Communisim) and Charles Darwin (Father of the Theory of Evolution)
• To further insult the Rockefellers, Rivera painted John D. Rockefeller, Jr. (who was opposed to alcohol) drinking in a nightclub with a woman and above their heads is a dish of syphilis bacteria.
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Lenin Engels, Marx, and TrotskyDarwin Rockefeller
diegorivera.org
Man, controller of the universe
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Outrageous until the end• During his 71 years, Diego and his wife Frida Kahlo (also a famous artist) attracted a lot of attention• Not all of the attention was good
• Diego painted whatever he felt—no matter what anyone thought
• Illustrating the history & beauty of the Mexican people was most important to him
Detail from Dream of a Sunday Afternoon in the Alameda Park (1948)
Diego Rivera & Frida Kahlo sometimes painted each other in their
works
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Dream of a Sunday Afternoon in the Alameda Park (1948)