DIEGO
RIVERA (1886-l957), muralist painter, was one of the
greatest artists in the XXth century. Born in Guanajuato Mexico,
in 1892 he moved to Mexico City with his family. He studied in
the San Carlos Academy and in the carving workshop of artist José
Guadalupe Posada, whose influence was decisive.
Later
in Paris, he received the influence of post-modernism and cubism,
the mediums in which he expressed himself with ease. Diego Rivera
with the use of classicist, simplified and colorful painting recovered
the pre-columbian past catching the most significant moments in
mexican history: the earth, the farmer, the laborer, the custumes
and popular characters.
Diego
Rivera's legacy to modern mexican art was decisive in murals and
canvas; he was a revolutionary painter looking to take art to
the big public, to streets and buildings, managing a precise,
direct, and realist style, full of social content.