Roberto Montenegro
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Roberto Montenegro Nervo (February 19, 1885, in Guadalajara – October 13, 1968, in Mexico City) was a painter, muralist and illustrator, who was one of the first to be involved in the
Mexican muralism Mexican muralism refers to the art project initially funded by the Mexican government in the immediate wake of the Mexican Revolution (1910–1920) to depict visions of Mexico's past, present, and future, transforming the walls of many public buil ...
movement after the
Mexican Revolution The Mexican Revolution () was an extended sequence of armed regional conflicts in Mexico from 20 November 1910 to 1 December 1920. It has been called "the defining event of modern Mexican history". It saw the destruction of the Federal Army, its ...
. His most important mural work was done at the former San Pedro and San Pablo monastery but as his work did not have the same drama as other muralists, such as
Diego Rivera Diego Rivera (; December 8, 1886 – November 24, 1957) was a Mexican painter. His large frescoes helped establish the Mexican muralism, mural movement in Mexican art, Mexican and international art. Between 1922 and 1953, Rivera painted mural ...
, he lost prominence in this endeavor. Most of his career is dedicated to illustration and publishing, portrait painting and the promotion of
Mexican handcrafts and folk art Mexican handcrafts and folk art is a complex collection of items made with various materials and intended for utilitarian, decorative or other purposes. Some of the items produced by hand in this country include ceramics, wall hangings, vases, fu ...
.


Life

Roberto Montenegro Nervo was born on February 19, 1885, in
Guadalajara Guadalajara ( ; ) is the capital and the most populous city in the western Mexican List of states of Mexico, state of Jalisco, as well as the most densely populated municipality in Jalisco. According to the 2020 census, the city has a population ...
.Balderas, p. 11 His parents were Colonel Ignacio L Montenegro and María Nervo, aunt of poet
Amado Nervo Amado Nervo (August 27, 1870 – May 24, 1919) also known as Juan Crisóstomo Ruiz de Nervo, was a Mexican poet, journalist and educator. He also acted as Mexican Ambassador to Argentina and Uruguay. His poetry was known for its use of metaphor a ...
. Montenegro had four sisters: Rosaura, Ana, Eva and María Eugenia and one brother, Arturo. The family was one of the beneficiaries of the
Porfirio Díaz José de la Cruz Porfirio Díaz Mori (; ; 15 September 1830 – 2 July 1915) was a General (Mexico), Mexican general and politician who was the dictator of Mexico from 1876 until Mexican Revolution, his overthrow in 1911 seizing power in a Plan ...
regime, leaving for the United States when the Mexican Revolution broke out in 1910. They returned in the mid 1920s.Balderas, p. 25 Little is known of Montenegro's childhood. One photo exists of him as a teenager in a park with Jorge Enciso and Luis Castillo Ledón. In interviews he only talked about ordinary things from this time such as going to buy pastry and admiring the colors and forms of ordinary things around him. His education began at a school for boys where he had his first experience with drawing. This led to clashes with Félix Bernardelli, who had a painting and music school in Guadalajara and introduced Montenegro to
Art Nouveau Art Nouveau ( ; ; ), Jugendstil and Sezessionstil in German, is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. It was often inspired by natural forms such as the sinuous curves of plants and ...
. He arrived to Mexico City in 1903, sent by his father to study architecture. Through his cousin Amado Nervo, he was able to meet many of the social elite of Mexico City including José Juan Tablada, Manuel de la Parra and Justo Sierra.Balderas, p. 27 From 1904 to 1906 he studied drawing and history at the Academy of San Carlos. His teachers included Leandro Izaguirre, Germán Gedovius and Alberto Fuster and his classmates were Diego Rivera, Ángel Zárraga, Francisco Goitia and Saturnino Herrán. He became familiar with Japanese art whose influence can be seen some of his illustrations for Revista Moderna. In 1906, he and Diego Rivera were finalists for a chance to go to Europe. The decision was made by coin toss with Montenegro winning. But Rivera would go months later. Montenegro was first in
Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...
, studying at the Academy of San Fernando under engraver Ricardo Baroja. He became a fanatic of the Prado Museum studying the works of
El Greco Doménikos Theotokópoulos (, ; 1 October 1541 7 April 1614), most widely known as El Greco (; "The Greek"), was a Greek painter, sculptor and architect of the Spanish Renaissance, regarded as one of the greatest artists of all time. ...
,
Goya Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes (; ; 30 March 1746 – 16 April 1828) was a Spanish romantic painter and printmaker. He is considered the most important Spanish artist of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. His paintings, drawings, an ...
and Ignacio Zuloaga y Zabaleta.Balderas, p. 12 From 1907 to 1910 he was in Paris where he had his first contact with
Cubism Cubism is an early-20th-century avant-garde art movement which began in Paris. It revolutionized painting and the visual arts, and sparked artistic innovations in music, ballet, literature, and architecture. Cubist subjects are analyzed, broke ...
, meeting
Picasso Pablo Diego José Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno María de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santísima Trinidad Ruiz y Picasso (25 October 1881 – 8 April 1973) was a Spanish painter, sculptor, printmaker, Ceramic art, ceramicist, and Scenic ...
,
Georges Braque Georges Braque ( ; ; 13 May 1882 – 31 August 1963) was a major 20th-century List of French artists, French painter, Collage, collagist, Drawing, draughtsman, printmaker and sculptor. His most notable contributions were in his alliance with ...
and
Juan Gris José Victoriano González-Pérez (23 March 1887 – 11 May 1927), better known as Juan Gris (; ), was a Spanish painter born in Madrid who lived and worked in France for most of his active period. Closely connected to the innovative artistic g ...
. Despite this, he did not have a Cubist period in his work. For two years he studied in Paris as the student of Colin Cowrstuos and exhibited his work in the city. He also traveled to London and Italy. He returned briefly to Mexico in 1910 but by 1913 he was back in Paris, for another six years, studying at the
École nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts École or Ecole may refer to: * an elementary school in the French educational stages normally followed by secondary education establishments (collège and lycée) * École (river), a tributary of the Seine The Seine ( , ) is a river in nor ...
and collaborating with
Rubén Darío Félix Rubén García Sarmiento (18 January 1867 – 6 February 1916), known as Rubén Darío ( , ), was a Nicaraguan poet who initiated the Spanish-language literary movement known as '' modernismo'' (modernism) that flourished at the end of ...
for a magazine called ''Revista Mundial''. When
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
broke out in 1914, he moved to
Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
then to
Mallorca Mallorca, or Majorca, is the largest of the Balearic Islands, which are part of Spain, and the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, seventh largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. The capital of the island, Palma, Majorca, Palma, i ...
accompanied by a painter named Gandara, where he painted and also made a living fishing. He also met painter
Hermen Anglada Camarasa Hermenegildo Anglada Camarasa (1871–1959), known in Catalan as Hermenegild (or Hermen) Anglada Camarasa, was a Catalan and Balearic Spanish painter. Life and career Born in Barcelona, he studied there at the Llotja School. His early work ha ...
there. Montenegro moved back to Mexico permanently in 1921. He kept a wide circle of friends that included writers, journalists, artists and politicians. He died in
Pátzcuaro Pátzcuaro () is a city and municipality located in the state of Michoacán, Mexico. The town was founded sometime in the 1320s, at first becoming the capital of the Purépecha Empire and later its ceremonial center. After the Spanish took over, V ...
on October 13, 1968.


Career


Illustration and publishing

During his lifetime, Montenegro had good relationships with various writers including José Juan Tablada and Luis G. Urbina working with ''Revista Moderna''. In France he collaborated with Le Temoin and in Madrid with Ramón del Valle-Inclán. In Mexico, he associated with a number of writers for a publication called ''Los Contemporáneos'' from 1928 to 1931 which included Carlos Pellicer, José Gorostiza and Salvador Novo.Balderas, p. 15 The first publication he worked with was ''Revista Moderna de México'', directed by Jesús E. Valenzuela. He began while still living in Guadalajara at age sixteen sending
vignette Vignette may refer to: * Vignette (entertainment), a sketch in a sketch comedy * Vignette (graphic design), decorative designs in books (originally in the form of leaves and vines) to separate sections or chapters * Vignette (literature), short, i ...
s and drawings for illustrations. He would continue to work with them after he arrived in Mexico City until 1911. He had a number of publications in Europe. In 1910, he published twenty drawing in an album called ''Vingt Dessins'' with a prologue by Henri de Régnier.Balderas, p. 13 In 1917, his illustrations were in a children's version of Aladdin published in
Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
. In 1919, he published a book of drawings called ''Vaslav Nijinsky: and interpretation of his work in Black-white and gold by Robert Montenegro''.Balderas, p. 14 In 1933 he published ''Pintura mexicana (1800–1860)'' dedicated to the painters of
Jalisco Jalisco, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Jalisco, is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Political divisions of Mexico, Federal Entities of Mexico. It is located in western Mexico and is bordered by s ...
. In 1950, he published research on
altarpiece An altarpiece is a painting or sculpture, including relief, of religious subject matter made for placing at the back of or behind the altar of a Christian church. Though most commonly used for a single work of art such as a painting or sculpture, ...
s called ''Retablos de México''.Balderas, p. 17 In 1952 he published an album of twenty drawings with a prologue by Alfonso Reyes.


Murals

Montenegro's first mural was done while he was living in Mallorca, for the Casino de la Palma. He was an early participant in the budding
Mexican muralism Mexican muralism refers to the art project initially funded by the Mexican government in the immediate wake of the Mexican Revolution (1910–1920) to depict visions of Mexico's past, present, and future, transforming the walls of many public buil ...
movement, recruited by Secretary of Education
José Vasconcelos José Vasconcelos Calderón (28 February 1882 – 30 June 1959), called the "cultural " of the Mexican Revolution, was an important Mexicans, Mexican writer, philosopher, and politician. He is one of the most influential and controversial pers ...
and returning to Mexico in 1921. His most important mural work is in the former monastery and school of San Pedro y San Pablo, the church portion of which is now the Museo de la Luz. The first mural was done in 1922 called the ''Arbol de la Vida'' (Tree of Life) which alludes to the origin and destiny of man. The next was the ''Fiesta de la Santa Cruz'' (Festival of the Holy Cross) which depicts a traditional festival related to construction workers on May 3 done between 1923 and 1924. This is considered to be the most important of the murals in this building. ''Resurrección'' (Resurrection) was painted between 1931 and 1933. It is a geometric composition with some Cubist influence. In the stairwell of San Pedro y San Pablo, Montenegro painted ''El Zodíaco'' (The Zodiac), which was left unfinished in 1923. He came back to it in 1931, finishing it in 1933. In addition to the murals, Montenegro created two stained glass windows influenced by Mexican folk culture called the ''Jarabe Tapatío'' (Guadalajara dance) and the ''La Vendedora de Pericos'' (The parakeet seller). The work on the building ran into political problems resulting in changed to the original plans. First, Vasconcelos insisted that Montenegro change a depiction of
Saint Sebastian Sebastian (; ) was an early Christianity, Christian saint and martyr. According to traditional belief, he was killed during the Diocletianic Persecution of Christians. He was initially tied to a post or tree and shot with arrows, though this d ...
, who was partially nude, androgynous and pointing a bow and arrow at the other central figure, a woman, stating it did not represent revolutionary values. In ''Fiesta de la Cruz'', a figure of Vasconcelos was originally included, surrounded by women and holding the flag of the Universidad Nacional de México. When Vasconcelos fell out of favor, this image was painted over and replaced by that of a woman. Other early murals included ''América Latina'' done in 1924 at the library of the
Universidad Iberoamericana The Ibero-American University (), also referred to by its acronym ''UIA'' but commonly known as ''Ibero'' or ''La Ibero'', is a private, Catholic, Mexican higher education institution, sponsored by the Mexican province of the Society of Jesus ( ...
, which is an allegory of Latin America in the form of a map. ''La historia'' was done in 1926 at the Escuela Benito Juárez. It is a formally designed painting with Oriental figures. Montenegro also painted Vasconcelos' private offices at the Secretaría de la Educación Pública and the Hermeroteca (magazine library) of the Universidad Nacional. Despite his early entrance into the Mexican muralism scene, he quickly lost prominence. His work did not have the dramatic flair of Diego Rivera,
José Clemente Orozco José Clemente Orozco (November 23, 1883 – September 7, 1949) was a Mexican caricaturist and painter, who specialized in political murals that established the Mexican Mural Renaissance together with murals by Diego Rivera, David Alfaro Siquei ...
and
David Alfaro Siqueiros David Alfaro Siqueiros (born José de Jesús Alfaro Siqueiros; December 29, 1896 – January 6, 1974) was a Mexican social realist painter, best known for his large public murals using the latest in equipment, materials and technique. Along with ...
, who would become the main three figures in the movement.Balderas, p. 16 Montenegro moved onto other projects but returned to doing some mural and building decoration work in the late career. In 1958, he painted a frieze called ''Apolo y las musas'' (Apollo and the muses) for the Teatro Degollado in Guadalajara; however, because of poor installation, it collapsed in 1963. In 1964 he designed a mosaic for the Casa de las Artesanía in Guadalajara called ''La muerte de la artesanías'' (The death of handcrafts) He also painted a mural at the Banco de Comercio with an allegory titled ''Industria, comercio y trabajo'' (Industry, commerce and work).


Canvas

Some of Montenegro's early exhibitions of his canvas work were in Mexico just before the start of the Mexican Revolution. In Guadalajara, he became part of the Círculo Artístico founded by Dr. Atl which had two exhibitions in 1911 and 1912. When the war broke out, he returned to Europe, living in Mallorca from 1914 to 1919. Here he worked on fishing and other scenes inspired by the customs of the area mostly done in Art Nouveau style. He exhibited his work several times in Mallorca and in Madrid in 1918 and 1919. When he returned to Mexico again, his first exhibition was at the Hotel Iturbide in the
historic center of Mexico City The historic center of Mexico City (), also known as the Centro or Centro Histórico, is the central neighborhood in Mexico City, Mexico, focused on the Zócalo (or main plaza) and extending in all directions for a number of blocks, with its fart ...
. In 1948, he painted works for the Hotel del Prado which were placed in the bar named after him. From 1950, he began doing portraits as a way to secure income; something he had done in the 1920s. These work would include portraits of painter
Jesús Reyes Ferreira Jesús Reyes Ferreira, (1880-1977) born José de Jesús Benjamín Buenaventura de los Reyes y Ferreira and also known as Chucho Reyes, was a self-taught artist and antiques/art collector and vendor. Reyes Ferreira began painting on crêpe paper, a d ...
, Dolores del Río, Gustavo Baz Prada,
Frida Kahlo Magdalena Carmen Frida Kahlo y Calderón (; 6 July 1907 – 13 July 1954) was a Mexican painter known for her many portraits, self-portraits, and works inspired by the nature and artifacts of Mexico. Inspired by Culture of Mexico, the country' ...
, Enrique Asúnsolo,
Elías Nandino Elías Nandino (April 19, 1900 – October 3, 1993) was a Mexican poet. Biography Nandino was born in Cocula, Jalisco. As a boy, he was brought up in the Catholic religion and served as an altar boy. He also attended Catholic school. Nandino's ...
, Genaro Estrada, José Rubén Romero,
Carlos Chávez Carlos Antonio de Padua Chávez y Ramírez (13 June 1899 – 2 August 1978) was a Mexican composer, conducting, conductor, music theorist, educator, journalist, and founder and director of the Mexican Symphonic Orchestra. He was influence ...
,
Rufino Tamayo Rufino del Carmen Arellanes Tamayo (August 25, 1899 – June 24, 1991) was a Mexican painter of Zapotec peoples, Zapotec heritage, born in Oaxaca City, Oaxaca de Juárez, Mexico.Sullivan, 170-171Ades, 357 Tamayo was active in the mid-20th cen ...
, Jesús Federico Reyes Heroles and Víctor Raúl Haya de la Torre. He also did four self-portraits, one of which shows himself in a convex mirror. His late non portrait work included male nudes, often homoerotic. These include ''El baño'', ''Violinista'' and ''Y así sucedió''.Balderas, p. 18 Other important canvas pieces include ''Oaxaqueña y alfareros'', ''La curandera'', ''La mujer con el pescado'', ''Celista'', ''Vida y muerte'' and ''La familia''.


Mexican handcrafts and folk art

One of the projects that Montenegro did after his initial work with murals was the promotion of
Mexican handcrafts and folk art Mexican handcrafts and folk art is a complex collection of items made with various materials and intended for utilitarian, decorative or other purposes. Some of the items produced by hand in this country include ceramics, wall hangings, vases, fu ...
, which he gained appreciation of while traveling Mexico. For the centennial of the end of the
Mexican War of Independence The Mexican War of Independence (, 16 September 1810 – 27 September 1821) was an armed conflict and political process resulting in Mexico's independence from the Spanish Empire. It was not a single, coherent event, but local and regional ...
in 1921, he organized an exhibition of this work, along with Dr. Atl and Jorge Enciso, the first of its kind organized with a critical sense.Balderas, p. 14-16 In 1934, he organized and was the first director of a folk art museum located in the
Palacio de Bellas Artes The Palacio de Bellas Artes (Palace of Fine Arts) is a prominent cultural center in Mexico City. It hosts performing arts events, literature events and plastic arts galleries and exhibitions (including important permanent Mexican murals). "Bella ...
, to which he donated a number of still life paintings. His promotion work included the discovery and promotion of 19th century folk painter José María Estrada, as well as exhibitions in Mexico and abroad. In 1940, he was the folk art curator for a very large exhibit at the
Museum of Modern Art The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) is an art museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on 53rd Street (Manhattan), 53rd Street between Fifth Avenue, Fifth and Sixth Avenues. MoMA's collection spans the late 19th century to the present, a ...
in New York called Twenty Centuries of Mexican Art.


Other work

Montenegro also held a number of government posts. In 1921, he was in charge of the Departamento de Artes Plásticas, the director of the Departamenteo de Bellas Artes in 1934, and the director of the Departamento de Enseñanza Artística for the Secretaría de Educación Pública in 1936. In 1946, he organized the Regional Museum of
Toluca Toluca , officially Toluca de Lerdo , is the States of Mexico, state capital of the State of Mexico as well as the seat of the Municipality of Toluca. Toluca has a population of 910,608 as of the 2020 census. The city forms the core of the Grea ...
. He became the head of the Departamento de Arte Popular of Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes in 1947. However, after clashing with INBA director Carlos Chávez, he left government service. Other work included state sets and design. He did scenery work for the Teatro de Ulises and participating in the shooting of the film ''Qué viva México!'', by Russian filmmaker
Sergei Eisenstein Sergei Mikhailovich Eisenstein; (11 February 1948) was a Soviet film director, screenwriter, film editor and film theorist. Considered one of the greatest filmmakers of all time, he was a pioneer in the theory and practice of montage. He is no ...
. In 1948, he decorated the cocktail lounge of the Hotel del Prado.


Artistry

Montenegro was a painter, a printmaker, illustrator and included some work in theater and decoration. His time in Europe gave him exposure to various influences from
Symbolism Symbolism or symbolist may refer to: *Symbol, any object or sign that represents an idea Arts *Artistic symbol, an element of a literary, visual, or other work of art that represents an idea ** Color symbolism, the use of colors within various c ...
,
Art Nouveau Art Nouveau ( ; ; ), Jugendstil and Sezessionstil in German, is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. It was often inspired by natural forms such as the sinuous curves of plants and ...
and
Cubism Cubism is an early-20th-century avant-garde art movement which began in Paris. It revolutionized painting and the visual arts, and sparked artistic innovations in music, ballet, literature, and architecture. Cubist subjects are analyzed, broke ...
especially from
Aubrey Beardsley Aubrey Vincent Beardsley ( ; 21 August 187216 March 1898) was an English illustrator and author. His black ink drawings were influenced by Woodblock printing in Japan, Japanese woodcuts, and depicted the grotesque, the decadent, and the erotic. ...
, William Blake and
Rubén Darío Félix Rubén García Sarmiento (18 January 1867 – 6 February 1916), known as Rubén Darío ( , ), was a Nicaraguan poet who initiated the Spanish-language literary movement known as '' modernismo'' (modernism) that flourished at the end of ...
. However, much of is aesthetic is also drawn from Mexican handcrafts and folk art, such as traditional clothing from the south of Mexico and religious objects. During his career, he felt torn between the classics and the modern in painting and tended to oscillate between the two, which prompted a certain amount of criticism of his art. Montenegro claimed to be a "subrealist" rather than a
Surrealist Surrealism is an art movement, art and cultural movement that developed in Europe in the aftermath of World War I in which artists aimed to allow the unconscious mind to express itself, often resulting in the depiction of illogical or dreamlike s ...
, and his paintings often mixed two fundaments elements, folklore and fantasy. In his later work Montenegro evolved an abstract style, although he never lost his interest in popular, pre-Hispanic and colonial art.


Recognition

In 1967, he received the Premio Nacional de las Artes . In the 2000s TV
UNAM The National Autonomous University of Mexico (, UNAM) is a public research university in Mexico. It has several campuses in Mexico City, and many others in various locations across Mexico, as well as a presence in nine countries. It also has 34 ...
produced a documentary about his work called ''Los murales perdidos de Roberto Montenegro'' (The lost murals of Roberto Montenegro) .


References


Bibliography

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Montenegro, Roberto 1885 births 1968 deaths Mexican scenic designers 20th-century Mexican painters Mexican male painters Mexican illustrators Mexican muralists Artists from Guadalajara, Jalisco Art Nouveau painters Art Nouveau illustrators Academy of San Carlos alumni 20th-century Mexican male artists Members of the Academia de Artes