VIDA AMERICANA &The Mexican Murialists: Review By Polly Guerin

Diego Rivera UPRISING 1930 

Art speaks of social and political upheaval and this tenet especially bore witness when Mexico underwent a dramatic cultural transformation at the end of its revolution in 1920. Artists responded by creating art that spoke directly to the people about social injustices and national life. You may not remember, but following the decade-long Mexican Revolution that ended in 1920, the muralist movement emerged when president Alvaro Obregon's administration established a public art program. Painters such as Rivera, Orozco and Sigueiros were offered walls to create frescoes that in large part paid tribute to the heroism of everyday Mexicans. While many post-war American artists traveled south to take in the street-art sights, the trio became  the toast of New York City art circles in the 1930s and exported the homegrown Mexican art form abroad. Image: Diego Rivera, UPRISING 1930 (c) Banco de Mexico-Rivera-Kahlo ARS. Reproduction authorized by the National Institute of Fine Art and Literature (INBAL) 2019. 
         VIDA AMERICANA: MEXICAN MURALISTS REMAKE AMERICAN ART 1925-1945 at the Whitney Museum will be on view from February 17 to May 17, 2020 in a stunning exhibition that will reveal the profound impact of Mexico's three leading muralists---Jose Clemente Orozco, David Alfaro Siqueiros, and Diego Rivera---on the style and subject matter of art in the United States during 1925-1945 With more than 200 works by more than 60 Mexican and American artists showcases the influences of Mexican artists on American counterparts. 
The murals and easel paintings that will be on display will be on loan from Mexico, Japan, Argentina, and the

Orozco's BARRICADA 1931

United Kingdom. These include works that are rarely exhibited in the United States, including Rivera's two  1932 studies for "Man at the Crossroads," Rivera's controversial fresco commissioned by New York's Rockefeller Center. After paying the full contract fee $21,000, Nelson Rockefeller had the mural demolished because Rivera
refused to remove a likeness of Vladimir Lenin from the composition. Borrowed from Mexico City's Museo
Anahuacalli, the two sketches will be exhibited in the United States for the first time, Other artists represented include Maria Izquierdo's My Nieces (1940) and Siqueiros's Proletarian Mother (1929) on loan from the Museo Nacional de Arte, and two paintings by Japanese-born artist Eitaro Ishigaki, on loan from Japan' Museum of Modern Art in Wakaayama. Image: Jose Clemente Orozco's Barricada 1931 Artist Rights Society (ARS) New York SOMAA Mexico City image (c) The Museum of Modern Art/Licensed by SCALA Art Resources, New York.  The Whitney's ongoing initiative to improve access for Spanish-speaking visitors include a number of resources in both English and Spanish. A family guide will feature texts and in-gallery activities. The Whitney also announced plans including a full-day symposium featuring artists, curators, educators and scholars presenting new perspectives on the role of Mexican Muralists in the United States. For further details contact www.whitney.org. COMMUNITY AND ACCESS
    

Alfredo Ramos Martinez CALLA LILLY VENDOR

PROGRAMS: Tours for Immigrant Families Feb 1, March 7, April 4, May 2, 2020 with Spanish speaking staff. Immigrant Justice Night, April 20, 2020 6-8 pm and COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIP MURAL PROJECT with The Door and Sophia Dawson. The mural will be painted over four sessions by students at The Door.  Participants will also receive a guided tour of Vida Americana. Mexican muralists in particular had a "seismic influence" on the development of social conscious art and street art, says Barbara Haskell, curator of Vida Americana: Mexican Muralists Remake American Art, 1925-1945. "This exhibition seeks to turn art history on its head," she said. "It's a good time to assess the creativity and aesthetic innovation that came out of the relationship between artists from Mexico and the United States," she explained, framing the show as a counterpoint to the physical and psychological borders that the Trump administration is seeking to enforce between the neighboring nations.  Image: The painter from Uruapan, Alfredo Ramos Martinez 1929., University of Arizona Museum of Art. TA TA DARLINGS!!! This is a ground breaking exhibition, timely and provocative. The new Whitney exhibition pays tribute to the Mexican Muralists too-long-forgotten legacy. Fan mail welcome at pollytalknyc@gmail.com.