World Monuments Fund Dedicates Restored Murals by Roberto Montenegro
The New York-based World Monuments Fund (WMF), with Mexico’s National Institute of Fine Arts (Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes, INBA), today celebrated the completed restoration of The Feast of the Holy Cross, an extraordinary mural cycle by Mexican artist Roberto Montenegro (1887–1968). Located in the former convent of Colegio Máximo de San Pedro y Pablo, the mural was painted between 1924 and 1933, and represents Montenegro’s most complete artistic program.
World Monuments Fund President Bonnie Burnham states, “The Mexican Muralist movement provides a vivid and compelling portrait of an important period of international artistic, political, and intellectual history. Roberto Montenegro was a pioneer of this movement, yet too few examples of his work have survived. The successful restoration of that artist’s Feast of the Holy Cross is therefore a reason for great celebration. The World Monuments Fund is grateful to the project’s main funders, Friends of Heritage Preservation and WMF Trustee Robert W. Wilson, who established WMF’s Challenge to Conserve our Heritage.”