| David Alfaro Siqueiros (1896-1974) is best remembered as one of the 'Tres Grandes', the great masters of the Mexican Mural Movement (along with Diego Rivera and José Clemente Orozco). The interactions between his political activism and his art-making are renown. In fact, 13 Grabados was created while Siqueiros was in jail for his association with the Communist Party. The grim imagery of the harsh life endured by the powerless and the poor resonates beyond a national level. | | Beyond his political activities, Siqueiros was an innovative artist, experimenting with dynamic mediums and techniques in his mural-making. He drew from Mexican folk and popular art, pre-Columbian cultures and avant-garde artistic techniques. He was an important influence to Jackson Pollock who studied at Siqueiros’ experimental workshop in New York in the mid-1930s. In 1968 Siqueiros became the first president of the Mexican Academy of Arts. |
