Murals

   

 

 

NIGHTMARE OF WAR, DREAM OF PEACE

 

In 1952, the Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes commissioned Diego Rivera to create a larger than life mural for an exhibition entitled Twenty Centuries of Mexican Art, which would travel to various cities across Europe. The work was censured by the Mexican authorities and in protest Rivera sent the work on a tour of various countries behind the Iron Curtain.

 

The backdrop of the mural is the historic downtown of Mexico City. The work suggests a peace pact between the two world powers of the day: the United States and the Soviet Union. The artist has placed Stalin and Mao Tse-Tung on the far right, who victoriously offer a dove of peace to three figures that represent the United States, England, and France: Uncle Sam, John Bull, and Marianne [1] .  Also depicted are soldiers ready to fire and the crucifixion of the proletariat.  In the background an atomic bomb explodes setting the historical time frame of the piece.

 

Prominently featured in the piece are important figures from Mexican culture, including Frida Kahlo, who can be seen in a wheelchair petitioning signatures for a peace pact.  Behind her Marco Antonio Borregui, nicknamed “el yucateco”, an assistant to Rivera is also depicted.

 

We know that the mural traveled from Mexico City to Poland.  From there, it continued its journey further into the Iron Curtain, stopping in Moscow and ending its tour in China.  The mural was discovered missing from its crate upon its return to Mexico City.  It is believed, that it was destroyed in China during Mao Tse-Tung’s Cultural Revolution. All that remains is the original sketch which is part of the Museo Soumaya Collection.

 

 

Study of perspective for the sculpture-painting of the Rectory building in the University City, Mexico City, The people to the University. The University to the people. For a neohumanistic culture of universal profundity.

 

David Alfaro Siqueiros began this work in 1952, when he was entrusted with creating a mural for the outside of the Rectory building in University City, the main campus of the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM). Siqueiros used geometry to present different angles and the human scale.  According to the artist, the strength of the work is its composition.

 

The focal points of the piece are Mexican society represented by the town and its people, the middle class represented by the University and the student, and the working class represented by the laborer. Upon completing his studies, the student presents his knowledge in the form of a book to society.  The interesting twist to this piece is that the book is based on the experiences of the laborer not of the student.  The socio-political commentary of the piece is that the laborer is essential to the formation of Mexican society. 


[1] Uncle Sam is a political characterization that represents the United States. John Bull represents the United Kingdom.  Marianne, a female icon of the French Revolution, represents liberty and the French people.