| Man At The Crossroads |
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Man at the Crossroads was a Mural by Diego Rivera . The Rockefellers wanted to have a mural put on the wall in Rockefeller Center. Nelson Rockefeller wanted Henri Matisse or Pablo Picasso to do it because he favored their Modern Style . Since neither was available, the Rockefellers asked Diego Rivera because Diego was one of Nelson Rockefeller mother's favorite artists. The Rockefellers commissioned Diego Rivera to create this huge mural. They gave him the theme: New Frontiers. Nelson A. Rockefeller wanted the painting to make people pause and think. The huge mural had many parts including: society women drinking alcohol, pictures of cells (sexually transmitted diseases) and then the famous Lenin portion (depicting communism) which upset Nelson Rockefeller. Rockefeller asked Diego Rivera to change the face of Lenin to an unknown man's face, but Rivera refused. The work was paid for on May 22, 1933 and immediately draped. People protested but it remained covered for over a year. Then the mural was smashed and taken down. Rivera responded by saying that it was "cultural vandalism." |