At the Mexican National Gallery of Art

John and I took the Mexico City metro to the Bellas Artes stop to visit the National Museum of Art which holds a collection of artworks from the 18th century until 1950.

 The collection resides in this imposing building on Avenida Hildago.

 Inside the galleries surround a courtyard on the 2nd and 3rd floors. Let's start on the 2nd floor with works from the 19th to mid-20th century.

We enjoyed the 19th century history paintings like The Founding of the City of Mexico, 1889, José María Jara, but we didn't think they were always successful paintings.

The landscape paintings of  José María Velasco, were much more successful, with their grand visions and tiny peasant inhabitants: The Valley of Mexico from Santa Isabel Hill, 1875

(detail from above)

 and Quarries, 1873, José María Velasco.

I love this blobby figure. (detail from above)

and this gigantic cactus, Night-blooming Cereus, 1887, José María Velasco

with this tiny figure beneath it.

 In the sculpture gallery

I liked this deco-influenced Allegory of the Revolution, 1945, marble, by Ernesto Tamariz.

Things certainly got lively in the late 1900s with visions of Bohemian lifestyles like Still Life by Manuel Ocaranza

and Baccanale by Antonio Fabrés, 1896

 and erotic and exotic as in By Order of the Sultan, by Antonio Fabrés in the early 20th century

or Baroque Nude, ca 1920, by Germán Gedovius.

The second floor galleries also contained a special exhibition of the work of Saturnino Herran and other Modernists.

Art Nouveau influenced the work of Saturnino Herrán seen in Self portrait, ca 1915.

Let's enjoy some of his work in the exhibition. The Glass Mill, 1909, Saturnino Herrán 

The Offering, 1913, Saturnino Herrán 

"Holy Fire', El Universal cover illustration, 1917, Saturnino Herrán.

Bugambilias, 1916, Saturnino Herrán 

and The Quetzal, 1917, Saturnino Herrán.

These later works certainly reminded us of the image of After the orgy, 1909, by Fidencio Nava that greeted us on the ground floor entrance to the museum.