Initially embracing cubism, Diego Rivera paintings later on shifted towards Post Impressionism. This is shown in their simple forms and large patches of clear colors. These forms and patches were inspired by the Cezanne paintings. Displayed at several exhibitions, they began to attract the attention of their viewers.
Creation was the first significant mural among the Diego Rivera paintings. It was done in 1922 and painted in encaustic in an experimental manner. The following Diego Rivera murals were done only in fresco. They dealt with Mexican society while reflecting the 1910 Mexican revolution.
There was a development of a native style in the Diego Rivera paintings, starting in September, 1922. The basis of this style was large, simplified figures and colors, with a tinge of an Aztec influence.
Story telling is a feature of Diego Rivera paintings. A perfect example of this feature in Diego’s mural entitled In The Arsenal. In this mural, Tina Modotti is shown holding an ammunition belt while facing Julio Antonio Mella, wearing a light hat and standing in front of Vittorio Vidale, wearing a black hat. The painting was considered by some spectators as evidence that Diego had prior knowledge of Vidale’s murdering Mella.
Between 1932 and 1933, the Diego Rivera paintings consisted of a series of 27 fresco panels entitled Detroit Industry. His mural, Man at the Crossroads, in 1933, contained a portrait of Vladimir Lenin. He repainted it in 1934 and retitled it as Man, Controller of the Universe.
Forming the bridge between 19th century Impressionism and early 20th century Cubism were the Cezanne paintings. They laid the foundations for the transition from the creation of artistic endeavour in the 19th century to a new and glaringly different art work in the 20th century.
A French artist and Post-Impressionist painter, Paul Cezanne was also known as the Father of Modern Art. This title was given to Paul after his Cezanne paintings featured repetitive, sensitive and exploratory brushstrokes, demonstrating design, color, composition and draftsmanship mastery. These brushstrokes proved to be highly characteristic of and clearly attributable only to Paul Cezanne.
Planes of color and small brushstrokes, that build up to form complex fields, are signatures of Cezanne paintings. They directly expressed the sensations of an observing eye and abstractions from an observed nature. Paul studied his subjects intensely and this is conveyed in his paintings, which also reflected his searching gaze and struggle to deal with human visual perception complexity.
The development of an ideal synthesis among naturalistic representation, personal expression and abstract pictorial order is the objective of Cezanne paintings. A suggestion of the moody and romantic expressionism of previous generations is the dark tones of the early Cezanne paintings. These tones were applied with heavy and fluid colors.
It was a commitment to contemporary life representations that Cezanne paintings eventually developed into. They became Paul’s own observation of the world. They were no longer concerned with either thematic idealization or stylistic affection.
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