#mexico

History

When in Mexico: Mysterious and Beautiful Flower Crowned Nun Portraits

Gambol into the lobby of most Mexican hotels, or visit any antique store in Mexico, and you’re bound to find a portrait of an 18th or 19th-century...

Guest Profile 10 May 2024

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: The Metlac Ravine by José María Velasco

The painting The Metlac Ravine looks just like a huge postcard from the past. It captures the monumental nature of the southern, coastal state of...

Alicja Gluszek 7 April 2024

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Virgin of Guadalupe by Sebastián Zalcedo

The Virgin of Guadalupe depicts the narrative of the Christian Virgin Mary who allegedly appeared multiple times in December 1531 before a Mexican...

James W Singer 17 March 2024

Sor Juana, Juan de Mirando, c.1680 History

Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz: Scholar, Feminist, Revolutionary

Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz was a 17th-century nun and the first published feminist poet of the New World. Her written works display her sense of wit...

Natalia Iacobelli 6 March 2024

Double-Headed Serpent, ca 1400-1521, mosaic on wood, British Museum, London, UK. Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Double-Headed Serpent

Double-Headed Serpent is a masterpiece of Aztec art that combines religious and commercial significance. It is filled with hidden allusions under a...

James W Singer 11 February 2024

Photography

Rare Childhood Photos of Frida Kahlo

Have you ever imagined what artists looked like when they were kids? Well, in this case, you don’t even have to use your imagination. Frida Kahlo...

Zuzanna Stańska 22 January 2024

The Jugglar. The Magician. Remedios Varo. Review

Last Chance to See: Remedios Varo Captures the Intangible at the Art Institute of Chicago

Embroidering the Earth, entrapping the moon in a cage, juggling stars—these are the elements of the fantastic and beguiling world of Remedios Varo.

Natalia Iacobelli 10 November 2023

Bizarre

Party with Skulls and Skeletons: Day of the Dead in Mexico

Heaven and earth are never as close as they are on that day. November 1 and 2 are traditionally celebrated as the Day of the Dead when spirits come...

Magda Michalska 30 October 2023

Women Artists

Tina Modotti: Photographer Made Revolutionary

Her life story reads like a script tailor-made for a movie (are you listening, Hollywood?). After all, how often do we encounter narratives of...

Magda Michalska 16 August 2023

Feathers in Pre-Columbian Art:Juan Bautista Cuiris, Portrait of Christ, 1950s, Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna. Detail. South American Art

All the Fuss and Feathers in Pre-Columbian Art

Artisans in pre-Columbian and colonial Mexico, as in Peru, used feathers to create exquisite adornments for nobles, fancy textiles for the elite, and...

Alicja Gluszek 5 August 2023

History

The International Dispute over Moctezuma’s Headdress

Throughout Mexico’s rich history, two significant milestones have shaped its identity: the fall of Tenochtitlan, the Aztec city that laid the...

Magda Michalska 5 August 2023

Fashion

Dress Like an Artist: Frida Kahlo’s Unique Style

Frida Kahlo is one of those women who are instantly recognizable. Even though she lived in the first half of the 20th century, she still evokes a...

Ledys Chemin 6 July 2023