 Diego Rivera (Mexican, 1886–1957) The Flower Seller, 1926 Oil on canvas Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Philip E. Spalding, 1932 (49.1) The Mexican painter Diego Rivera devoted the mature
part of his career to powerful depictions of his
compatriots. Though renowned for his for his
large-scale, government-sponsored murals, he also
executed a remarkable number of easel paintings. The
Flower Seller demonstrates Rivera’s skill at design and
grandeur of conception. A Mexican woman nurses her
child as she sits among an abundant and varied array
of flowers. Crisp in contour and bright in hue, the
contrasting rounded and angular forms of the flowers fill
the canvas, framing the woman and imparting balance
to its composition. While this painting inevitably evokes
Christian imagery of the Virgin and Child, it also speaks
to Rivera’s sympathetic respect and affection for the
Mexican people, his humanistic concern for the dignity
of the individual, and his persistent social realism. |