Diego, Remedios, Frida et al

“Disquieting presence”. 1959. By Remedios Varo. (MAM, Mexico city)

Remedios Varo (1908-1963) was born in Spain. One of the first women to study art in Madrid. She went to Paris in 1937. As many artists did then. Like Leonora Carrington, she left Europe in 1941 for Mexico. Never came back. She is one of the greatest Surrealist artists in history.

Sketch for “A disquieting presence”. If I ever felt the need to be convinced of the magic contained in a single pencil, this would do the trick…

Portrait of Ruth Rivera, 1949. By Diego Rivera. We were only going for a magical expo of Remedios Varo at the MAM (Museo de Arte Moderno) in Mexico city, when we stumbled on another expo of Diego Rivera. Goody, goody.

Ruth Rivera (1927-1969), daughter of Diego Rivera, was the first woman to graduate from the Polytechnic school of architecture in 1950… (Another pioneer… 1950? Shaking my head). The mirror reminds me of a moon. Could be intentional.

“The revolution”, 1964. By David Alfaro Siqueiros. Chapultepec castle.

Siqueiros (1896-1974) was one of three major Mexican muralists with Rivera and Orozco. Most mexican artists of the time inclined to the left. Siqueiros was the most radical. In 1941, he attacked Trotsky’s house in Mexico with a party of followers all armed with machine-guns. After that, he fled in exile to Chile, helped by Pablo Neruda. Small world.

Mexican peasants on the left of the mural above represent the Mexican revolution of 1910. To the right, one can recognise Karl Marx. And possibly Engels and Stalin… Not sure. The mural then continues across several other walls.

Diego Rivera, sitting by an Olmec head, 1945. MAM

Olmec head, Villahermosa, c.1992. (Photo yours truly) The Olmecs were an ancient pre-Colombian civilization with first centres around 1500BC. They carved huge heads in stone, weighing up to ten tons. They disappeared around 400AD.

Portrait of Linda Christian. 1949. By Diego Rivera.

Linda Christian (1923-2011) was a Mexican born actress who did most of her career in Hollywood. Her best known movie is “Tarzan and the mermaids”. Shot in Acapulco with Johnny Weissmuller. A triple B-Movie. (Love B-movies). Don’t you think the tree trunk to the left looks ready to jump on Linda Christian? I think this qualifies as a B-Portrait.

“Exploration of the sources of the Equinox”, 1959. Remedios Varo.

Remedios Varo had a unique style. Her human characters, the composition. The strange transport machines.

“Multiple self-portrait”, 1950, by Juan O’Gorman. Lots of details in this painting. I remember the wooden frame for tennis rackets on the left. Used them “meself”.

O’Gorman (1905-1982) was a Mexican architect, painter, muralist. Despite his pretty boy looks, he was a very talented and versatile. In 1931, barely 26 and influenced by Le Corbusier, he built a house for Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo. Two houses in fact, linked by a bridge. Still there. Now a museum.

“The two Fridas”, 1939, by Frida Kahlo. Recurring themes of pain and suffering. One must look at the photos of Frida to get another sense of her life. She was very much active, except for certain periods of her life.

“Cat paradise”, 1955, Remedios Varo. Varo, like Leonor Fini and others, loved cats…

Remedios Varo. In L’Excelsior. This picture is probably from the 50’s. Varos died young, at 54. Who knows what other masterpieces she could have left, had she lived on?

“The devil in church”, 1947, Siqueiros. This powerful picture made me think of the fire in Notre-Dame.

The history of religion, part of a tryptic. 1950. Diego Rivera. Rivera probably introduced many symbols in this piece. One strikes me most. The central character is probably Zeus, holding lightning in his hand. Look closely at his face. Left and right are the two heads of Janus, the double-faced Roman god. He who happens to be, amongst many other things, the god of doorways… Doors are very popular among bloggers… Aren’t they?

“Señor Presidente municipal”, (Mr. Mayor) 1947, by Manuel Alvarez Bravo (1902-2002). Alvarez Bravo was one of the pioneers of Mexican photography. Elections in Mexico have always been a sensitive topic. This “humble” man in the photograph is also a proud man. He is the elected Mayor of his little village. Despite the clear lack of resources, he is “Mr. Mayor”.

Going to the market. (My title). By Diego Rivera, 1931. This indigenous woman carries her wares in a basket on her head. Going to the market maybe. No caption in the museum. I would say by her dress that she is from the Southeast, possibly from Oaxaca.

“La huída”, The escape, 1961, by Remedios Varo. Love this piece. Part of a tryptic.

“Under construction”. Anonymous. Tlalpan district. Mexico city, 2022.

Unless otherwise mentioned all pictures were taken at the MAM (Museo de Arte Moderno) in Mexico city.

Thank you for taking Equinoxio’s express tour of Mexican art… Hope you enjoyed the Equinox yesterday.