“With this aim, my comrades and I painted in Mexico a long series of mural paintings which were useful for the masses of workers and peasants of Mexico.”
Diego Rivera
Diego Rivera – painter, known as an active communist and husband of Frida Kahlo, was born in 1886 in Mexico.
Rivera’s radical political beliefs, harsh attacks on the Church and the clergy, and his flirtation with Trotskyists and left-wing murderers made the painter a controversial figure even in communist circles. He developed his artistic style to a large extent by painting walls: he was characterized by the use of strong colors and simplified figures, and most often he painted Mayan natives in a political context.
In his younger years, Diego Rivera flirted with cubism, but later, thanks to the works of Cezanne, he turned more towards post-impressionism with simple shapes and patches of vivid colors.
Due to its importance in the artistic history of the country, the government of Mexico declared it a “monumentos historicos”. As of 2018, Diego Rivera holds the record for the highest price for a work by a Latin American artist. The painting Rivals from 1931 is part of the collection of Peggy and David Rockefeller. It was sold for 9.76 million US dollars.