Vida Americana: Mexican Muralists Remake American Art, 1925–1945

Feb 17, 2020–Jan 31, 2021

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The economic and social turmoil that was unleashed by the stock market crash in 1929 caused many Americans to question a capitalist system that no longer seemed compatible with the country’s democratic ideals. Artists in larger numbers than ever before resolved to use their art to effect change. In seeking to mobilize collective energies against racial and class oppression and industrial capitalism, they turned for inspiration to the Mexican muralists, whose work was steeped in leftist social and political content. Taking their cue from these role models, artists in the United States embraced the belief that art had a social role. By depicting episodes of violence against workers as well as against Black Americans and other minorities, they hoped to provoke public outrage that would ultimately lead to a more just society. Among the most frequent subjects were police brutality against unionized labor, injustice against political radicals, and racial terror in the form of lynching.

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A color sketch depicting two people being attacked in an alley.

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Vida Americana: Mexican Muralists Remake American Art, 1925–1945

Art as Political Activism

6

Anton Refregier, Sand Lot Riots, color sketch for Rincon Annex, Post Office, San Francisco, California, 1946–47

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On the Hour

Vida Americana: Mexican Muralists Remake American Art, 1925–1945

Art as Political Activism

6

Anton Refregier, Sand Lot Riots, color sketch for Rincon Annex, Post Office, San Francisco, California, 1946–47

Artists

Explore works from this exhibition in the Whitney's collection

Explore works from this exhibition
in the Whitney's collection