Latino Murals

Murals first became an established art form in Mexico in the 1920s and 1930s. Renowned artists like Diego Rivera, Jose Clemente Orozco and David Alfaro Siqueiros were invited to create art on the walls of public and government buildings.

From the beginning, Mexican Muralism was overtly political, and often reflected the historical, social, and economic trials of everyday Mexicans.

This building, part of the Mexico City World Trade Centre, houses theaters and event spaces. However, it is most famous for its exterior, which is covered with one of largest murals in the world.  It was painted by artist David Alfaro Siqueiros.

This work, with its grand themes—the title translates as “The March of Humanity”—is typical of Mexican Muralism. Mexican muralists often framed individual portraits, stories, and myths as part of the larger struggle of humanity.

For Mexican Muralists, the mural form itself was political. Unlike paintings in galleries, murals were publicly available to rich and poor alike. Unlike pictures in frames, murals could accommodate a broad range of images. 

The easy availability of spray paint in mid-20th century led to an explosion of graffiti - wall paintings on property without the property owner's permission.

While some graffiti was viewed as simple vandalism, other works rose to the level of wall art. Graffiti and its styles blended with Mexican and Chicano muralism.

A large part of graffiti culture is tagging, or painting a stylized signature. Stylized lettering and direct printed messages have become part of many Latino murals.

Street art draws from many sources, but cartoons, Japanese anime, and pop culture are major influences. Compare the lower panels of this wall to the more traditional upper panel.

Here in the predominantly Latino Mission neighborhood in San Francisco, this mural expresses feminism and hometown Latino pride. It sits comfortably next to casual graffiti painted in the same palette.

Portraiture often plays a large role in Latino murals. Community leaders, politicians, historical figures, artists, actors, and other public figures are common subjects. 

Because murals are specific to a location, they often, but not always, honor people who were born, raised, or lived in the neighborhood.

This mural depicts Diego Rivera, the most famous artist of Mexican Muralism. Rivera was commissioned to complete many works in the United States, including an enormous masterpiece at the Detroit Institute of Art. 

Frida Kahlo was also a prominent Mexican painter and Rivera’s wife. Her paintings and famous personal style expressed deep links to Native American and Mexican culture. The couple have themselves become symbols of Mexican art and pride.

In this mural, the subjects are placed on a background resembling a Navajo blanket. The Navajo are a Native American people of the Southwestern U.S.; they have influenced Mexican-American Mestizo culture.

While some murals are created with the blessing of property owners, others fall victim to removal, repainting, or reconstruction. Some murals painted without the property owner’s permission are painted over by property owners as quickly as they are completed. 

Others disappear when a building or structure gets replaced or remodelled. Gentrification, in which wealthier, usually white residents displace poorer, often minority populations, is also another reason why these murals disappear

This Chicago neighborhood is one of the largest and oldest Mexican-American communities outside the Southwest. It faces increasing pressure as Chicago property values soar, and neighborhoods cater to new more affluent residents.

Though blocked by construction equipment, you can still read the sign welcoming residents to Casa Aztlán community center. The center provided support to Latino residents seeking education, healthcare, housing services, and civil rights advocacy.

The Casa Aztlán mural shows many of the classic features of Latino murals: portraits, a collage style, political references, and traditional Southwestern/Latino patterns. It also includes Aztec and Catholic imagery.

As of June 2017, this mural had been destroyed by developers who plan to replace Casa Aztlán with luxury apartments. After the community objected, the developer promised to recruit the artist to re-paint the mural once construction is complete.

Here is the mural repainted by the same artist but there is a variation on the original design. Can you spot the changes?

This mural is in Spanish Harlem, or El Barrio, in New York City, the U.S.’s largest Puerto Rican neighborhood. Though murals are strongly associated with Mexican and Mexican-American cultures, other Latin American cultures have adopted the form.

This mural also demonstrates the transition from semi-legal, local, community, or graffiti art to established, commissioned public works by major artists from around the world.

This mural depicts the Puerto Rican-American author Nicholasa Mohr who wrote vivid works about growing up in the Puerto Rican barrios of New York City.

This work was part of a larger city-wide project called the Monument Art Project, which brought muralists from around the world to create works in New York. The artists were chosen by a local Nuyorican (New York Puerto Rican) artist.