If asked to name a Mexican artist, you’d probably immediately think of Frida Kahlo. However, I’ve recently discovered the magnificent work of David Alfaro Siqueiros.
David Alfaro Siqueiros (1896-1974) was a radical, social realist painter and muralist. A member of the Mexican Communist Party and established ‘Mexican Muralism’ alongside Kahlo’s husband, Diego Rivera and José Clemente Orozco.
He frequently painted representations of strong, proud and tragic figures of the proletariat and portraits of heroic revolutionary, Emiliano Zapata and repressive regime leader, Porfirio Diaz. His murals were often on a massive scale; La Marcha de la Humanidad housed at Polyforum Cultural Siqueiros in Mexico City is the largest in the world.
I see stylistic similarities to Stanley Spencer and Lucien Freud – probably what drew his work to me.
There are examples of his work in the permanent collections of the Tate in London and MOMA in New York.
This is a short documentary about the man. Unless your grasp of Spanish is better than mine, I’d recommend you switch on the subtitles to watch!
Additional image credits:
Artnet | Christie’s |
