Diego Rivera

Lidia Mejia Computer art2/9/15Per: 2

1886-1957

About Diego Rivera

Diego was a prominent Mexican painter, he sought to make art that reflected the lives of the Mexican people, he was born on

December 8, 1886, in Guanajuato, Mexico. He began drawing as a child. Around the age of 10, Rivera went to study art at the San

Carlos Academy of Fine Arts in Mexico City.

During the 1930s, Diego Rivera did not have any work in

progress working on murals, so he dedicated his time to

creating personal pieces and paintings. In 1940s, he returned to doing work on murals, for the Golden Gate Exposition which

was held in San Francisco. From 1945 to 1951 he spent

quite a bit of time, and lived in Mexico City; "From the pre-Hispanic civilization to the Conquest" was the work he

created during this time frame, and the last mural which he

completed was called the "Popular History of Mexico".

In the 1930s and 1940s, Diego Rivera painted several murals in the United States. Some of his works created controversy,

especially the one he did for the Rockefeller family in the RCA building in New York City. The mural, known as "Man at the

Crossroads," featured a portrait of Russian Communist leader Vladimir Lenin. The painting was controversial because it included an image of Lenin and a Soviet Russian May Day parade. Despite protests from artists, Nelson Rockefeller

ordered its destruction before it was completed.

Man at the Crossroads

In 1935, Diego Rivera masterfully created The Flower Carrier. Like many of Rivera's paintings, The Flower

Carrier imparts simplicity, yet exudes much symbolism and meaning. The colorful painting displays a peasant man in white clothing with a yellow sombrero, struggling on all

fours with a dramatically oversized basket of flowers that is strapped to his back with a yellow sling. A woman, most

likely the peasant's wife, stands behind him trying to help with the support of the basket as he attempts to rise to his

feet.

The Flower Carrier

Reflection

http://www.biography.com/people/diego-rivera-9459446