Diego Rivera Murals at the Secretariat of Education

Yesterday I wrote about the special exhibit, "The Greatness of Mexico", being held at the headquarters of the Secretariat of Public Education in Mexico City's historic center.  I concluded by saying that the building is also the site of a large series of mural paintings by Diego Rivera.

The Secretariat of Public Education (SEP) is housed in a colonial building that was once one of the largest convents in New Spain.  Between 1923 and 1928 the Secretariat hired artists to paint murals in the two courtyards of the building.  The majority of them were done by Diego Rivera.  

Most tourists to Mexico City see the famous Rivera murals in the National Palace, but the SEP has a much larger collection of his work with 235 panels.  It was also Rivera's first major mural project.  

I had visited the SEP a number of years ago, but, after viewing the special exhibit, I took the time to look at and photograph the Rivera murals once again.  And this time I will share some of those photos with you here on the blog.

The theme of Rivera's paintings on the ground floor of the first courtyard is "Labor".  Here he depicts the many forms of work done by the laborers of Mexico.  Some panels emphasize the harsh working conditions which many have suffered.

The Peasant

The Rural Teacher

Mining

Entering the Mine

The miners, carrying tools and wooden beams, evoke images of the Passion of Christ.

Leaving the Mine

The workers are searched lest they try to carry off nuggets of precious ore.

The Potters

The Sugar Mill

The Dyers

The Weavers

The murals on ground floor of the second courtyard deal with Mexican traditions and festivals.

The Market

The Dance of the Ribbons

The Day of the Dead

The Offering

Heading upstairs there are still more murals by Rivera, murals that strongly reflect the painter's political views.  We will take a look at some of those in the next entry.