Contents
Rufino Tamayo
Combining Mexican imagery with modern colour and form.
Children Playing with Fire · Birth of Our Nationality
- Born
- 25 August 1899
- Birthplace
- Oaxaca, Mexico
- Died
- 24 June 1991
More people
Rufino Tamayo
Rufino Tamayo was a Mexican painter and printmaker who pursued a distinct path alongside the country’s muralist movement.
Early life
Oaxaca
Grew up in Oaxaca before moving to Mexico City.
Art studies
Attended the San Carlos academy and continued learning independently.
Career
- 1920s
Early practice
Worked with ethnographic collections and held exhibitions.
- 1930s–1950s
International career
Worked in Mexico, New York and Paris.
- 1970s onward
Printmaking innovation
Developed textured prints through Mixografia.
Selected work
Children Playing with Fire
Used a charged scene to evoke human danger.
Birth of Our Nationality
Created a major mural.
Mixografia
Helped develop prints with sculptural texture.
Beyond work
Museums
With his wife Olga, supported museums in Oaxaca and Mexico City.
Collections
Collected pre-Hispanic art as well as modern international work.
Sources & photo credit
Life, career and references ↗Mexican Ministry of Culture biography ↗Photo: User Steve Eifert on en.wikipedia. Public domain · Original image. Cropped and displayed in monochrome.
