Significant Mural Art from Around the World

La Historia de México, by Diego Rivera, 1929-1935

The History of Mexico, by Diego RiveraPalacio Nacional de México, Mexico City, Mexico 1929-1935

At the end of the Mexican Revolution, in 1920, many government-sponsored murals were commissioned to celebrate overthrowing the Porfirio Diaz dictatorship. Three famous artists commissioned during this period were Diego Rivera, José Clemente Orozco, and David Alfaro Siqueiros.

One of the most impactful murals is Diego Rivera’s depiction of Mexico's history that covers three walls over the stairwell in the Palacio Nacional de México. The mural’s three distinct sections are divided into: ancient Mexico, the colonial past to the present, and the future.

The first part shows the everyday lives of the Aztecs, religious practices, agriculture, and geographical features. The mural shows the artisans weaving, making pottery, and painting on scrolls to document their culture. The second section shows the country’s history of colonizers, invaders and civil conflicts, rebellions, and revolutions. The final section is an imagined vision of Mexico’s future. Diego Rivera and the government at the time were socialists so the visuals reflect these ideals.

Mutiny on the Amistad, Hale Woodruff, 1939

Mutiny on the Amistad, by Hale WoodruffAlabama, USA, 1938

In 1938, nearly 80 years after slavery was abolished in the USA, African-American artist Hale Woodruff, was commissioned by Alabama's Talladega College to paint six large-scale murals portraying the Amistad mutiny and the aftermath. The murals were designed for the lobby of the Slavery Library at the college and commissioned to instruct the students about their ancestors’ struggle for liberation.

The first series of Woodruff’s murals show the revolt of the Mende slaves on the Spanish ship La Amistad. The first mural, The Mutiny Aboard the Amistad (1839), depicts the kidnapped African slaves about to turn on the crew of the ship the Amistad. The second painting, The Amistad Slaves on Trial at New Haven, Connecticut, (1840), shows the Africans at the United States Supreme Court where they faced their oppressors to gain their freedom. The third mural, The Return to Africa (1842), shows the freed people as they returned to African shores.

In the second series, Woodman produced three murals relating to the college's role in African-American history. Themes include freed men enrolling after the American Civil War and the college being constructed.

Two years before these murals were commissioned Woodruff spent six weeks in Mexico City assisting Diego Rivera in painting the murals in the Hotel Reforma. This experience guided his bold style in the creation of his murals.

Guernica, Pablo Picasso, 1937

Guernica, by Pablo PicassoMuseo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, Madrid, Spain, 1937

The mural-sized painting (3.49 x 7.77 meters) by Picasso was commissioned by the Spanish Republican government which was fighting against General Francisco Franco and the Nationalist forces during the Spanish Civil War. Earlier that year, on April 26, 1937, Nazi and Italian aircraft heavily bombed the town of Guernica in the Basque Country, in northern Spain. The civilian town wasn’t targeted for its military significance, but because Guernica was the historical and symbolic heart of the Basque nation. The purpose was to demoralize the Basque people by attacking their cultural identity, and to undermine the resistance.

Guernica was exhibited later that year at the Spanish Pavilion of the Paris International Exposition. Afterwards it was displayed around the world as a powerful symbol against war. WW2 quickly followed so it was held in New York's Museum of Modern Art until the war ended when it was relocated to Madrid’s Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía.

The power of the mural is still relevant today. The attack on Guernica was the first time a civilian town was heavily bombed by planes. It represented a new kind of warfare that was terrifying and showed the rising tension and barbaric nature of what was evolving across Europe at the time.

The chaotic scene was painted with a somber palette of white, grey and black. Suffering and devastation is presented through dismembered figures, flames, a screaming woman, a writhing horse, a dead baby, a dismembered soldier, and a light bulb that hangs above them all – potentially signifying a bomb or the destructive power of modern technology.

What murals have had an impact on you? Let me know in the comments below.