Wednesday, April 2, 1997
The Latin American Museum of Art pays homage to one of Mexico’s
greatest
international artists in an exhibit of Diego Rivera’s
smaller,
more intimate works.By Alicia Cheak
Daily Bruin Contributor
Works from renowned Mexican muralist Diego Rivera will make the
Museum of Latin American Art its home until June 8. On loan from
the collection of the Art Museum of the State of Veracruz, "Del
Tiempo y del Color" ("Of the Time and of the Color"), a 29-piece
exhibit of Rivera’s lesser-known and much smaller-scaled pieces is
the third exhibition of the fledgling Long Beach museum which
opened its doors to the public in November.
Absent from the exhibit are the immense, panoramic murals which
made the artist famous. Rather, the exhibit traces the development
of Rivera’s artistic sensibilities, providing snapshots of the
obvious talent he possessed as a young man to the refinement of
those skills in Europe. Back in Mexico, Rivera was able to yoke his
meticulous foreign education to the ideas and images of his own
country, and in so doing, he carved out a place for himself in both
Mexican and aesthetic history.
The collection of paintings, watercolors, temperas and charcoal
sketchings are displayed in a single yellowish room, echoing the
landscape color of Mexico’s plains. Divided into two sections, the
first part of the exhibit represents the early feats of the artist
as represented by the oil portrait of his mother, Maria Barrientos.
There is also the famed 1906 landscape piece, "Mixcoac Ravine,"
which caught the eye of the governor of Veracruz and won Rivera a
scholarship to Europe. "Mixcoac" also anticipates important themes
of the land and nature which recur in Rivera’s future works.
Rivera’s experience with European art masters and
experimentation with modernist styles are reflected in the next set
of works. "Portrait of the Sculptor Oscar Meistchainoff" is an
impressive cubist oil painting of one of Rivera’s many companions
during his stay in Europe. Oscar sits chiseling a head piece, the
geometry of his art form heightened by Rivera’s fragmented manner
of depiction.
Looking across a series of six or seven paintings, one sees that
Rivera had dipped himself in almost every style and medium popular
in the 19th century; Cezanne and Renoir’s influences surface in
selected works. A wonderful, impressionistic oil piece,
"Montparnasse," depicts a rich window view of the French railway
station and surrounding apartments.
The disparity between this piece and the social and political
ones at the height of his career might make one wary of Rivera as
author. Yet, at this point, his artistic vocabulary is still
developing and what these early works show is the process to find
his niche, his own artistic identity.
The second section of the exhibit is a series of works by Rivera
back in Mexico. Bringing with him the tools and ideas collected
from his 13 years abroad, Rivera wanted to make art meaningful. He
believed that, as an artist, he had a social responsibility to his
people and his country. Along with other Mexican artists, Rivera
revived the Renaissance art form of frescoes. These served as
excellent vehicles for social and political commentaries, and,
commissioned to be painted in government and public institutions,
the murals and their ideas were immediately accessible to the
masses.
Murals aside, this exhibit seeks to focus on simpler works,
simple only because of the absence of overwhelming detail. The
works give the audience an opportunity to see individual people or
ideas that were important in Rivera’s life. His personal
relationships are documented in the portraits of his first wife,
Russian artist Angeline Beloff, and his second, the actress
Guadalupe Marin.
Other works show his rediscovery of Mexico’s people, land and
heritage. Rivera began to see beauty and emblems in lower class
Indians, subjects which were considered not worthy of artistic
attention. "Mujer con Flores" and "Hombre Cargando Pavo" both
demonstrate Rivera’s artistic vision of the land, the people, their
folk tales and their lives. His allegiance to the communist
movement is also evident in the water colors of campesinos, fields
and labor done late in his life. These works show his maturity as
an artist, of how he cultivated his skills and applied them to a
subject matter which took on national significance.
"Del Tiempo" is an intimate look at how the artist came to be.
It would have been nice to see one of Rivera’s massive frescoed
pieces. Still, this exhibit does offer a look at more obscure
works, which, though not quite as impressive, are still able to
provide a quiet look at the development of an artist much
admired.
ART: "Diego Rivera: Del Tiempo y del Color" is on view at the
Museum of Latin American Art, 628 Alamitos Ave., Long Beach,
through June 8. Information: (562) 437-1689.
Latin American Art Museum
Rivera’s "Retrato de Actriz," a 1948 oil on canvas, top.
"Naturaleza Muerta con Botella y Vaso," middle."Padre con Su Hijo,"
a 1940
charcoal and watercolor drawing, bottom..Latin American Art
Museum
"Mujer con Flores" (1936) reveals Rivera’s impressions of
Mexicans.