Mexican Muralism

When the decade-long Mexican Revolution ended in 1920, the Mexican government began commissioning artists to create public artworks (often murals) that showcased the country’s cultural history and illustrated idealistic visions of the future. Between the 1920s and ’70s, these Mexican artists developed a new visual language to create political paintings of epic scope in a movement now known as Mexican muralism. Often referred to as the Big Three, the landmark figures of Mexican muralism are José Clemente Orozco, Diego Rivera, and David Alfaro Siqueiros. In the auction market, record sales for Mexican Muralists include Rivera’s The Rivals (1931) at $9.7 million, Rufino Tamayo’s The Troubadour (1945) at $7.2 million, and Dr. Atl’s Mañana …