Mardonio Magaña-Camacho (c.1865–1947) also known as Magañita, was a Mexican educator and sculptor known for his

folk art Folk art covers all forms of visual art made in the context of folk culture. Definitions vary, but generally the objects have practical utility of some kind, rather than being exclusively decorative art, decorative. The makers of folk art a ...

stone direct carvings, he was also known to work with wood and mud. He was a self-taught artist inspired by nature, that was "discovered" by artist

Diego Rivera Diego María de la Concepción Juan Nepomuceno Estanislao de la Rivera y Barrientos Acosta y Rodríguez, known as Diego Rivera (; December 8, 1886 – November 24, 1957), was a prominent Mexican painter. His large frescoes helped establish the ...

. It's said that Diego Rivera was quoted as saying Magaña was, "the greatest contemporary Mexican sculptor".

Biography

Born between 1865 and 1866 in La Estancia Nueva,

Guanajuato Guanajuato (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Guanajuato ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Guanajuato), is one of the 32 states that make up the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 46 municipalities and its capital city i ...

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

to a

peasant A peasant is a pre-industrial agricultural laborer or a farmer with limited land-ownership, especially one living in the Middle Ages under feudalism and paying rent, tax, fees, or services to a landlord. In Europe, three classes of peasants ...

family, the son of Dolores Camacho and Jacinto Magaña. He spend most of his life working as a foreman at the property of Don Vincente Silva in his hometown. At age 52, after the devastation left by the

Mexican Revolution The Mexican Revolution ( es, Revolución Mexicana) was an extended sequence of armed regional conflicts in Mexico from approximately 1910 to 1920. It has been called "the defining event of modern Mexican history". It resulted in the destruction ...

he moved to the capital,

Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...

to find work. And in 1921, while working at an art school called Escuela de Pintura al Aire Libre de Coyoacán (English: School of Outdoor Painting in Coyoacán) as a janitor, he started creating sculptures. Between 1925 and 1928 he becomes a general caretaker for the school and by 1929 he is promoted to professor of sculputure. Throughout the 1930s he held various teaching positions in Mexico. Magaña's artwork is included in museum and private art collections internationally some of which are;

Philadelphia Museum of Art The Philadelphia Museum of Art (PMoA) is an art museum originally chartered in 1876 for the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia. The main museum building was completed in 1928 on Fairmount, a hill located at the northwest end of the Benjamin Fr ...

, Museum of Modern Art (MoMA),

National Museum of Mexican Art The National Museum of Mexican Art (NMMA), formerly known as the Mexican Fine Arts Center Museum, is a museum featuring Mexican, Latino, and Chicano art and culture. It is located in Harrison Park in the Pilsen neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois. ...

, the

Nelson A. Rockefeller Nelson Aldrich Rockefeller (July 8, 1908 – January 26, 1979), sometimes referred to by his nickname Rocky, was an American businessman and politician who served as the 41st vice president of the United States from 1974 to 1977. A member of t ...

Collection, and

Frida Kahlo Museum The Frida Kahlo Museum (Spanish: ''Museo Frida Kahlo''), also known as the Blue House (''La Casa Azul'' for the structure's cobalt-blue walls, is a historic house museum and art museum dedicated to the life and work of Mexican artist Frida Kahlo ...

. Magaña's portrait was painted by Diego Rivera in his large mural ''

Pan American Unity ''Pan American Unity'' is a mural painted by Mexican artist and muralist Diego Rivera for the Art in Action exhibition at Treasure Island's Golden Gate International Exposition (GGIE) in San Francisco, California in 1940. This work was the cente ...

'' (1940) and can be seen at the

City College of San Francisco City College of San Francisco (CCSF or City College) is a State school#United States, public community college in San Francisco, California. Founded as a Junior college#United States, junior college in 1935, the college plays an important local ...

, where the mural is now located.

References

External links

Article by Diego Rivera (1948), "Mardonio Magaña."
In Spaces. Mexico. No.1 p. 5-6. Mexican sculptors Male sculptors 1947 deaths Mexican folk art Artists from Mexico City Artists from Guanajuato Year of birth uncertain {{Mexico-artist-stub