The first exhibition dedicated to a Latin American artist

The National Gallery in London presents the first monographic exhibition in the United Kingdom dedicated to José María Velasco
Since March 29, the National Gallery in London has hosted the first monographic exhibition dedicated to a historic Latin American artist, focusing on the figure of José María Velasco (1840–1912), considered the most influential Mexican painter of the 19th century. Entitled José María Velasco: A Vision of Mexico, the exhibition brings together approximately thirty works, including paintings and drawings, mostly from public and private Mexican collections, including seventeen pieces from the Museo Nacional de Arte (MUNAL) in Mexico City.
It is also an excellent opportunity to explore Latin American art in a unique setting, which can be explored in greater depth through a private tour of the National Gallery.

The exhibition coincides with the bicentenary of the beginning of diplomatic relations between Mexico and the United Kingdom, and is also the first time that the National Gallery has dedicated an exhibition to a 19th-century Latin American artist.
José María Velasco: A Mexican Landscape Between Science and Art

Velasco achieved international recognition for his depictions of the Valley of Mexico, capturing both the natural grandeur of the landscape and the effects of industrialization. Painted during decades of intense social change, his works combine aesthetic lyricism with scientific precision. In addition to being a painter, he was a botanist, geologist, and naturalist, which is reflected in his empirical approach to drawing and painting.

Although during his lifetime he exhibited in Europe and the United States and received numerous awards as a representative of Mexico at international exhibitions, his work does not appear in any public collection in the United Kingdom. The last major retrospective outside Mexico took place almost 50 years ago, in San Antonio and Austin, Texas, in 1976.
An exhibition divided into six thematic sections

The exhibition spans more than five decades of Velasco's work, organized into six thematic sections:

Landscape and Industry, with works such as The Valley of Mexico from the Molino del Rey (1895) and The Textile Factory of La Carolina (1887), examines the impact of modernization on the natural environment.

Flora reflects his interest in botany, evident in pieces such as Cardón, State of Oaxaca (1887) and A Rustic Bridge in San Ángel (1862).

The Valley of Mexico, the central section, revolves around the iconic The Valley of Mexico from the Hill of Santa Isabel (1877).

Ruins and Archaeology addresses his fascination with Mesoamerican cultures, with works such as The Pyramids of the Sun and the Moon (1878) and The Pyramid of the Sun at Teotihuacán (1878).

Geological Time deepens his scientific vision of the landscape, with paintings such as Rocks (1894) and Rocks on the Hill of Atzacoalco (1874).

In later years, his final work, Study (1912), concludes the tour.

Read more