Flower Festival: Feast of Santa Anita
Flower Festival: Feast of Santa Anita By Diego Rivera
Diego Rivera was born on December 8, 1886 in Guanajuato, Mexico. His love of art showed early on as he began drawing as a child. Around the age of 10, Rivera was able to study art at the San Carlos Academy of Fine Arts in Mexico City. One of his early influences was artist José Posada who ran a print shop near Rivera's school. In 1907, Rivera traveled to Europe to further his art studies. There, he became friends with other leading artists of the day, including Pablo Picasso.
Everywhere he looked, Rivera saw potential pieces of art. This is what the Mexican master of the fresco said after he returned from a stay in Europe. Rivera would often speak of his love for the common people and his strong sense of nationalism for his birthplace, Mexico. The crowds that would pack into the marketplaces of his youth, and the bright colored dresses of the women and young girls carrying flowers, made an impression and inspired him. The obvious concern that Rivera expressed for his fellow countrymen ran as deep as the colors he used in his paintings. To understand the artist is to understand his masterpiece, Flower Festival: Feast of Santa Anita.
Diego Rivera painted The Flower Festival: Feast of Santa Anita in 1931 as a tribute to the Mexican religious, traditional celebration of Santa Anita Canal. The artist didn’t only depict the religious aspect of the Catholic Feast Day, but also included his subtle touches with regard to the hardships of the Mexican working agricultural class. This beautiful piece of the white calla lilies being carried by the priest, the huge bundles of red flowers held by three figures, and the young women in a kneeling position. These signify Rivera’s religious belief in Catholicism and his compassion for the workers of his country.
Throughout his artistic career, Rivera was looking to develop art with a widely known identity, one that would benefit the Mexican people. The figures and flowers
Diego Rivera was born on December 8, 1886 in Guanajuato, Mexico. His love of art showed early on as he began drawing as a child. Around the age of 10, Rivera was able to study art at the San Carlos Academy of Fine Arts in Mexico City. One of his early influences was artist José Posada who ran a print shop near Rivera's school. In 1907, Rivera traveled to Europe to further his art studies. There, he became friends with other leading artists of the day, including Pablo Picasso.
Everywhere he looked, Rivera saw potential pieces of art. This is what the Mexican master of the fresco said after he returned from a stay in Europe. Rivera would often speak of his love for the common people and his strong sense of nationalism for his birthplace, Mexico. The crowds that would pack into the marketplaces of his youth, and the bright colored dresses of the women and young girls carrying flowers, made an impression and inspired him. The obvious concern that Rivera expressed for his fellow countrymen ran as deep as the colors he used in his paintings. To understand the artist is to understand his masterpiece, Flower Festival: Feast of Santa Anita.
Diego Rivera painted The Flower Festival: Feast of Santa Anita in 1931 as a tribute to the Mexican religious, traditional celebration of Santa Anita Canal. The artist didn’t only depict the religious aspect of the Catholic Feast Day, but also included his subtle touches with regard to the hardships of the Mexican working agricultural class. This beautiful piece of the white calla lilies being carried by the priest, the huge bundles of red flowers held by three figures, and the young women in a kneeling position. These signify Rivera’s religious belief in Catholicism and his compassion for the workers of his country.
Throughout his artistic career, Rivera was looking to develop art with a widely known identity, one that would benefit the Mexican people. The figures and flowers