Rivera, Diego. Manuscript signed at the conclusion and initialed nine times throughout, in pencil, in English, 15 pages, octav...

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Rivera, Diego. Manuscript signed at the conclusion and initialed nine times throughout, in pencil, in English, 15 pages, octavo and small quarto, 28 January 1949, in pencil. The manuscript is in the hand of the interviewer, André Visal; some pages yellowed and chipping along one vertical boarder. Rivera, Diego. Manuscript signed at the conclusion and initialed nine times throughout, in pencil, in English, 15 pages, octavo and small quarto, 28 January 1949, in pencil. The manuscript is in the hand of the interviewer, André Visal; some pages yellowed and chipping along one vertical boarder. The artist's detailed discussion of the situation for painters in Mexico. The manuscript reads in full: ...Mexico has entered in the period of bourgeois consolidation in the interior policy -regarding the exterior policy is entirely in the hands of the Washington govt through the investment of American money, control of the value of Mexican by Wall St and the treaties signed collectively between latin American countries and US who objectively take out the independence of all the latin American countrys especially Mexico because of being such close neighbors and because no country in the world is independent without having a natl economy based upon his own industry and agriculture which is not the case in Mexico. On the other hand all through the history the ruling class has controlled or tried to control the production of art, thru the market, helped by fashions, legislation corruption and finally by force. Only escape to this power of control the art production who make blood & bombs with the insurrection of groups or classes fighting against the rulers. Naturally, now when the fight for Agrogion democratic bourgeois revolution has stopped to give place to consolidation of the new bourgeoisie -typically represented by Miguel Aleman and his govt -has not the same need of [demagogy] of the preceeding govt. Therefore they have established a mural painting commission but they dont commission any more mural painting and the commission intergrated [David Alfaro] Siqueiros, [Jose Clemente] Orozco, Rivera has his own work stopped in govt buildings of Mexico City. On the other hand the new bourgeoisie has discovered the new French style -the ultra modern new academician Le Corbusier. Being a half colonial country Mexico has a petty bourgeois & bourgeoisie who never dare to employ any style belonging to herself unless his foreign masters approve. This is why now, after having tried French style for houses, they have passed to California & Colonial (as they call themselves) and now they build houses in French Corbusier style - especially because being more simple they are more inexpensive. The accumulation of money, around 10000 declared new millionaires, and the new type of architecture has established a certain need of painting not only to be enjoyed esthetically but also to play as furniture -and especially -to [accomplish] its basic function of exchange value susesptible to rise in value & to sell good interest to investor. This need help by the interest of the recently established art dealers, int. decorators art critics, his helpers and in general all apparatus of control belonging to new bourgeoisie including the fine arts institute -has provoked a production in accord with the needs of the buyers. That is the real reason and the truth about the so-called crisis of Mexican painting. Recently the devaluation of the peso has changed the millionaires to 1/2 millionaires especially those who didnt buy dollars on time and naturally the market has shrank. Another fact as important as the preceding facts is that the A. bourgeoisie take a very active part in the fight against commoners following faithfully Mr. Truman & Co. And even the handsome Mr. Wallace has declared in some fashionable college of US 'we should uphold Christianism to Bolshevism.' Then, the painting suffers the consequence. This is why I have received fewest stones by catholic boys thru windows of my studio house - nice children educated by monstas. One of those boys called 'the dog' by nickname has erased the quotation of Ignacio Romerez in my mural of Del Prado hotel. And in the time of Roosevelt the attention of A. bourgeoisie has been called by the sensation done in the American public by the murals painted in Pomonah College, Dartmouth and S of S. Research in NY by Orozco. Siqueiros painted mural in L.A. which fell down -new materials and the mural destroyed by Mr Rockefeller & Co -the murals of Detroit, S.F. & workers school of NY painted by Rivera. U.S. now is deposited with ILGWU -and they have tried to capitalize mural painting for own purpose making a first investment of 8 million dollars and later thru the ILGWU -one much bigger amount which is much more than what all Mexican painters together would get in 500 years. Many young A. artists - almost hundreds of them - have shown a great enthusiasm & great talent & skill but not only them but even the old masters has become the champions of imperialistic capitalism & dozens of murals have been erased & whitewashed by American authorities under the most picturesque & logical & stupid pretext. The attempt of control of mural painting under capitalism has suffered a tremendous defeat. In this occassion the American artist has acted as well as John Brown and the soldiers of Lincoln did. They acted as the sons of the great Walt Whitman -not in the case of Washington & Wall Street. Is the more important act of resistance of the American ... middle class -after the civil war against slavery. But money is powerful very powerful. Having failed to impose the contents favorable to capitalism to the artist the bourgeoisie has tried to neutralize them giving plenty of money for museums, collections schools exhibitions, gallerys etc of 'art for art's sake' and abstract art with the greatest enjoyment of art dealers who doesn't like to have to sell paintings which offends the buyer -and the art critics are able to say anything about painting. That represent nothing. These facts has produced the fashion in US for abstract art and has suceeded much better than the attempt to create murals for capitalism. This fashion has flourished in US 75 years later than in Paris because all the fashions in US & L.A (intellectual fashions are 25 years behind Europe -because of Latin American is to colony -American most powerful is also a colony of England & Paris (culturally). This phenomena has begun to have a repercussion on Mexico. The very smart set of [Tenochtetlan] has discovered Picasso & Cubism, Chirico & Surealism and from time to time they dare to buy a piece of Picasso pour les pauvre or Miro pour les petite bourse or Chirico pour les familles nombreuse which are the articles produced by Mexicans & sold by fashionable Mexican galleries today -I [meet] with imitators of French painting just like in NY today regarding the artists who paints by own impulsion neither in the contents or the form of his painting exist any crises. The fact than by the moment the govt doesn't ask for mural paintings is just an incident in the fight, as the govt of Aleman is small incident in history of world. In 1923, I have write & publish in the review 11 Arquetecto of Mexico City this statement. For the revolutionary painters the acquisition of a world to paint in public or private b[ui]ld[ing]s is just a position ... to the bourgeoisie in the revolutionary war. This position has to be maintained as much as possible but is nothing but a strategic position. Those positions, like in every war, are going to change hands many times - many of our paintings are going to be destroyed & substituted by counter revolutionary paintings. So we destroyed by the progressive forces & retained by rev. artist. It is absolutely unimportant if these artists are to be of service or the people following us in future. We are nothing but soldiers of the revolution using our painting, our will, our sensitivity & our mind just as any other mind of soldiers of our army. And now is happening what I have expected. At the time of NY begin fashion for 'pure art' in Paris the more active & alive artists repeat our position & even our words of 25 years ago in Mexico. Now in Europe is growing mural painting & pop. art. The destiny of capitalistic Am. is to buy expensively rubbish of Europe. Its the revenge against the American $. For the Mexican painter who in his style has really succeeded to express his own deep national & for this reason universal failing there is no crisis & no fall of the market. The Mexican people buy now more than ever before. The only question is they buy what they like not what certain artists & art dealers wish them to like. Mexican collector has expend around million pesos in Orozco & Siquieros easel paintings. By years certain author has find buyer for paintings before finished them and the last 10 years even I have sold every painting I have done to Mexican people. Only by exception few drawings & water colors has been acquired by following people & a few Americans have come to have portrait done by me. On other hand the contents of my mural of Del Prado is more clear symbol & correct from Marxist point of view than any I have done before. And the counterattack by catholics has produced often the opinion of the private police radio patrol in case of the more important banks & bankers therefore very well informed a little more than 3 million $ of publicity in favor of Del Prado hotel, which is not a bad business for the capitalist neither for me & proved the statement of Stalin telling the coexistence of Marxism & cos. is possible in spite of Mr Truman opinions & Missouri waltz -After all the real truth is that the Mexican mural painting is the result of 50% of the marvellous plastic material tradition of Mexico more than 5000 yrs old. 10% of world art movement especially Paris -20% of Mexican agrogion democratic bankers revolution & 20% of the int comm. party ... but his emotional and political impulsion is 20% Mex rev. 80% proletarian rev. of October & the effort cultural scientific & aesthetic of the comintern. An extraordinary manuscript providing Rivera's incendiary insights on the plight of Mexican artists.