MEXICO CITY (AP) 鈥� In the 1940s, Mexican artist Diego Rivera had a dream: to build a sacred place to preserve and display his lifelong collection of pre-Hispanic art.
The Anahuacalli Museum in Mexico City, which celebrates its 60th anniversary this month, is everything he hoped for.
Inch by inch, its pyramid structure honors the Mexica worldview. Among its 60,000 archeological pieces, dozens represent ancient deities. And though foreigners visit on a regular basis, its workshops and year-round activities aim to connect the local communities to their historic roots.
鈥淭his is Diego Rivera鈥檚 dream come true: a space in which art, nature and the public coexist,鈥� said Mar铆a Teresa Moya, director of the Anahuacalli.
The was aligned with a Communist ideology. He and his wife 鈥� 鈥� openly criticized the Catholic Church. But their fascination with Mexico鈥檚 pre-Hispanic spirituality is palpable through their work.
In Rivera鈥檚 case, he bought and collected archeological pieces, depicted them on his murals and designed the Anahuacalli for their exhibition.
鈥淒iego had a great respect, affection and admiration for our ancestors,鈥� Moya said. 鈥淓verything he designed or created was inspired by our origins.鈥�
Mexico鈥檚 pre-Hispanic worldview was so important to him that it even influenced the Anahuacalli鈥檚 architecture. While its main floor represents the underworld 鈥� and feels dimly lit and cold 鈥� the second and third levels were inspired by the earthly and celestial worlds, which makes them seem warmer and flooded by light.
Though Mexica heritage is dominant in the museum鈥檚 design, visitors can also appreciate other Mesoamerican influences, said Aldo Lugo, a researcher who points out the Mayan, Toltec and Teotihuacan elements through guided tours of the museum.
The three-story pyramid was inaugurated in September 1964, seven years after Rivera died. Its name, Anahuacalli, translates from the Nahuatl language as 鈥渉ouse surrounded by water.鈥�
According to a recent government publication, the Anahuacalli is distinctive among Mexican museums in being situated in an ecological reserve of about six acres (2.6 hectares) protecting nearby flora and fauna. The museum itself was built with volcanic rock to fuse with its natural surroundings.
Rivera and first thought of the place as an oasis where they could move away from the buzz of the city. Later, even as their plans changed and Rivera decided to build the museum, to be buried in the Anahuacalli鈥檚 underworld.
The adjoining niches of the main floor are currently empty. Kahlo鈥檚 remains are located in her and Rivera was buried in the Rotunda of Illustrious Persons, a national cemetery site that honors those who made major contributions to Mexico's history and culture. 鈥淏ut we keep the niches, just in case they end up here,鈥� Lugo said.
During a one-hour visit through the Anahuacalli, its various rooms and cabinets can be read as a book.
From the start, Coatlicue, mother of the gods, greets all visitors from the ceiling. Her myth was special for the pre-Hispanic understanding of the world: 鈥� the sun and the moon 鈥� explained the origins of day and night.
The Anahuacalli鈥檚 main floor is focused on rituals and burials. The first level displays archeological pieces depicting everyday life, while the second level 鈥� representing the celestial world 鈥� is devoted to the gods.
The museum鈥檚 walls and stairs bear meanings too. Each of the Anahuacalli's four corners depict a natural element 鈥� earth, wind, water and fire 鈥� and their respective pre-Hispanic deities. The stairs represent the transition between the stages of one鈥檚 existence.
鈥淭he Anahuacalli is a temple,鈥� Moya said. 鈥淎nd one of a kind.鈥�
To celebrate its 60th anniversary, the museum planned various activities reflecting on Mexico鈥檚 artistic and cultural landscape.
Aside from a gastronomic festival in June and monthly lectures on Rivera鈥檚 legacy 鈥� which the public can attend through December 鈥� neighbors who knew the artist are working on a video to preserve the oral collective memory of the museum and the neighborhood where it鈥檚 located.
鈥淲e want the community to keep feeling that this space belongs to them,鈥� Moya said.
Contemporary artists are often invited to host exhibitions at Anahuacalli. 鈥淎tomic amnesia,鈥� by Mexican sculptor Pedro Reyes, will be on exhibit from Sept. 13 through January 2025.
His 20 works on display, a press release said, were inspired by one of Rivera鈥檚 murals, which was highly controversial and mysteriously disappeared, though its sketch is preserved: 鈥淭he Nightmare of War, The Dream of Peace. A Realist Fantasy (1952).鈥�
Like Rivera, Reyes' art reflects society. His works are meant to express the current political landscape and, following in Rivera's footsteps, he regards his art as a platform to protest and raise awareness.
鈥淒iego was quite controversial,鈥� Moya said. 鈥淥n the one hand, he had a huge interest in rescuing our pre-Hispanic heritage, but he also adhered to socialism in an unwavering way.鈥�
鈥淗e wanted us to look at our past to understand our present and plant something for the future.鈥�
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Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP鈥檚 with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.
Mar铆a Teresa Hern谩ndez, The Associated Press
